FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The 2025 HDSA Team Hope Walk - Napterville, IL Takes Place Sunday, May 18, at the Naperville Riverwalk Grand Pavilion.
The Illinois Chapter of the Huntington's Disease Society of America will be holding their annual Team Hope Walk at the Naperville Riverwalk Grand Pavilion, 912 Honorary Sindt Memorial Court, Naperville, IL 60540. Registration starts at 9:30 AM, and the event starts at 10:30 AM. The leisurely 1 - 1.5 walk is a celebration fo hope featuring raffle prizes, t-shirts, a 50/50 raffle and a complimentary hot dog lunch catered by Sporty's Catering. We also have painting with Pinot's Palette and will be raffling a "Wagon of Cheer" along with a handmade quilt. All proceeds support HDSA's mission to improve the lives of people affected by Huntington's disesae (HD) and their families.
Team Hope is HDSA's largest national grassroots fundraising event, which takes place in over 100 cities across the U.S. and has raised more than $28 million for HD since its inception in 2007. Thousands of families, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and communities walk together each year to support HDSA's mission to improve the lives of people affected by HD and their families.
The first Team Hope Walk was in 2005. From 2005 to 2020 our local walk volunteer group was led by Dave and Susie Hodgson. During that time the Illinois walks raised $1.3 million, and this became the model that was copied across the country. Dave and Susie met when they were each dealing with spouses suffering from Huntingtons Disease. Today they are caring for children with the disease.
Online registration and donation informatio can be found at the Illinois HDSA website: https://illinois.hdsa.org/events/2025-team-hope-walk-naperville-il
For more information about the event, please contact: Lillie Paxson (lilliepaxson@gmail.com).
HDSA's Team Hope Walk Program is nationally sponsored by Neurocrine Biosciences and Teva Pharmaceuticals. Local sponsors include UniQure, Sporty's Catering, Pinot's Palette, Raimonde Drilling, Village Tavern of Schaumburg, Potbelly Sandwiches, KJB Home Services, Thrivent Financial, Lift-All, John Grace Branch 825, Flood Brothers, and Gerald Subaru of Naperville.
May is HD awareness month. Help us turn up the global volume on HD awareness by posting videos, stories & photos on all platforms, using #LetsTalkAboutHD, to educate the world about the devastating impact that HD has on families.
Huntington's disease (HD) is a hereditary degenerative brain disorder that results in a loss of cognitive, behavioral, and physical control, and for which, presently, there is no tratment or cure. HD slowly diminishes the affected individual's ability to walk, think, talk and reason. Symptoms usually appear in an individual between 30 and 50 years of age and progress over a 10 to 25 year period. Eventually a person with HD becomes totally dependent upon others for their care. Every child of a parent with HD has a 50/50 chance of inheriting the faulty gene. Today, there are approzimately 41,000 symptomatic Americans and more than 200,000 at-risk of inheriting the disease. The symptoms of HD are described as having ALS, Parkinsons' and Alzheimer's - simultaneously.
The Huntington's Disease Society of America is the premier nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of everyone affected by HD. From community services and education to advocacy and research, HDSA is the world's leader in providing help for today and hope for tomorrow for people with HD and their families. HDSA was founded in 1967 by Marjorie Guthrie, the wife of legendary folk singer Woody Gutrhie. Woody died from HD complications when he was only 55 years old, but the Guthrie family legacy lives on at HDSA to this day.
Our past president Louise Vetter clearly stated our goal. "Huntington Disease is a family disease because of its genetic nature, and it takes the hard work of local communities to provide care, information and support for everyone affected by it." The Team Hope program is a unique way for the community to come together as part of one united team to fight HD, learn more about this devastating disease, and understand the importance of HD research to finding cures for many other diseases.
To learn more about Huntington's diseaes and the work of the Huntington's Disease Soceity of America, visit www.hdsa.org or call (800)345-HDSA.
Media Contact:
Weston Greene
Communications Associate
(212) 242-1968 ext. 216
wgreene@hdsa.org