Page 18 - Fall 2020 CMTA Report

Awareness Month Celebrates

CMT Champions

he CMTA family once again
came together during Aware-
ness Month 2020 to tell the
world about the rare disease.
T We also recognized and cele-
brated our “champions with
CMT”—the people who inspire
us and lift us up with the courage,
strength and heart they show in
facing the daily challenges of living
with the disease. Completing fun
and engaging activities and chal-
lenges, the CMTA community
gained greater knowledge of CMT,
educated peers and health care nity. CMT’s extensive and deep times online. Challenging them-
professionals and championed our impact on daily life—socially, selves and their social networks
cause: a cure for CMT. professionally, emotionally and with a “What is CMT?” Quiz
As CMT patients know all physically—is an experience that and gathering on Zoom for an
too well, meeting someone who patients are uniquely qualified to educational “CMT Mythbusting”
knows about CMT is rare. voice. event, community members
Although CMT affects 3 million The CMTA Youth Council seized the opportunity to deepen
people worldwide, relatively few kicked off the month with energy their knowledge of CMT and
people have heard of it, even and enthusiasm, creating and leverage it to make an impact.
within the health care commu- broadcasting a “Breaking News The CMTA family shared our
Report” that was viewed 3,654 “What is CMT?” informational
graphic on social media 2,372
times, reaching 215,092 unique
My Champion individuals online. We rallied

together to make the patient
By Vanessa Pope voice heard, helping educate
health care workers locally and
My daddy, Rayford Redding, is
my CMT champion! He is 66 nationally by disseminating CMT
years old and when he was 17 educational and advocacy com-
they told him he would be in a municational pieces.
wheelchair by 21. This strong- The CMTA family contains
willed, hard-headed man walks many champions. From veteran
to this day and will run circles branch leaders and board mem-
around any “young” man when it bers to young walk participants
comes to working. He has and new donors, every one of our
beaten all odds and shows me members deserves to be cele-
every day that I can do anything brated for their determination
I want, even with CMT. He has shown me that some things are dif- and passion in raising awareness
ficult to do when you have CMT, but there are other ways to do and the funds that make our
them. He is brave and amazing and I love him so much! He inspires shared mission possible. With the
me to believe in myself and do my best at all times, never give up help of these champions, the
and never sit down, go the extra mile and achieve all my goals. CMTA is accelerating the field of
CMT research toward treatments
and a cure. h

18 THE CMTA REPORT FALL 2020