11th Annual Ella’s Race
August 30
On Sunday, August 30, Ella and the Cunneen Family will host the 11th annual Ella’s Race, a 2.6 Mile Fun Run AND one-mile walk through La Grange Park to raise awareness and funds for epilepsy research! 1 in 26 people will develop epilepsy in their lifetime, and our 2.6-mile fun run route brings awareness to this fact. This family-friendly event will be full of music, snacks, and lots of smiles!
Through research there is hope, but less than 0.5% of NIH funding goes toward epilepsy research. Epilepsy affects more people than multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, Parkinson’s disease, and ALS combined. Yet, despite its prevalence, epilepsy receives less federal funding per person compared to these other brain disorders, which leads to critical gaps in research. There is an urgent need to unravel the complexity of epilepsy, accelerate research, and fill funding gaps for the 1 in 26 fighting for a cure.
Race Registration
Join us to celebrate 11 years of funding research and promoting awareness of epilepsy! Register today to secure your Ella’s Race dry-fit event shirt.
The Inspiration for this Event
We are raising money in honor of our 16-year-old daughter and epilepsy warrior, Ella, with all proceeds benefitting CURE Epilepsy, the leading non-governmental agency fully committed to funding epilepsy research.
Ella was first diagnosed with epilepsy days after her first birthday. Since that day we have tried approximately 20 different medications, special diets, prolonged hospital stays, surgical consults, countless second opinions, all in the hopes of gaining seizure control. Unfortunately, she still has frequent seizures that, when combined with all the medications she takes, have significantly slowed her development. Despite these challenges, Ella’s indelible spirit remains untouched. She continues to be our driving force, attacking each new challenge with a smile. You can learn more about Ella here.
Epilepsy is frustrating and difficult to treat for many reasons, not the least of which is all the different ways it can manifest. Ella’s primary form of epilepsy, epileptic spasms, is particularly difficult because it is rare and there is very little research on it.
Unfortunately, epilepsy’s reach extends far beyond just Ella, affecting over 3.4 million Americans, with 200,000 more cases being diagnosed each year. CURE Epilepsy funds research grants for young and established investigators around the globe, and we believe these are the people who are going to be able to someday cure our Ella. Finding a new and novel treatment and changing technology is currently our only hope for Ella to become seizure-free.
Sponsors
Thank you to Neurelis and SK Life Science, the generous sponsors of this year’s Run/Walk Series!
