Celebrate Christopher Reeve

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Dear Reeve Foundation Friend, The recent news that a completely paralyzed man, Rob Summers, has stood and taken steps has brought all of us so much joy and hope. I only wish that the man who did so much to make this breakthrough possible were here to celebrate it with us. On September 25, the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation will celebrate what would have been Christopher Reeve's 59th birthday. And I know there is nothing in the world he would have wanted more than to watch Rob take those historic steps -- because they validated everything Christopher believed, and everything he worked so hard to make happen. Christopher convinced the world of the moral and scientific urgency of making a new commitment to spinal cord injury research. Today that commitment has radically changed the outlook for people living with these injuries. This news proves that science will deliver life-changing treatments and cures for paralysis -- just as Christopher always knew it would. The only question is how soon. That is a question for you and me to answer. It is up to us, as Christopher's friends and supporters, to continue the work he began. That's why I hope you will join me in celebrating Christopher's upcoming birthday by supporting the Reeve Foundation with a special gift in his honor right now. I hope you know how much it would have meant to Christopher that, in honor of his birthday, you were helping advance the research that he believed in so strongly. Two years after he was completely paralyzed below his chest by a hit-and-run driver, Rob Summers volunteered for a cutting-edge research project funded in part thanks to your support by the Reeve Foundation. An epidural stimulator was implanted over his lower spinal cord. Continual direct epidural stimulation, plus aggressive locomotor training on a treadmill, enabled Summers to stand on his own, take steps and after seven months, regain some voluntary motor function. Observations indicate some improvements in bladder control and regulation of temperature. Knowing Christopher, I imagine he would welcome this inspiring news with profound joy and satisfaction -- and then with fierce determination to work twice as hard to speed the pace of research so that we can realize its full potential to change thousands of lives. That was Christopher's dream -- and it is one that you and I can realize by working together to carry on his legacy. Please join me, Christopher's children and all of Christopher and Dana's dearest friends in celebrating Christopher's legacy on what would have been his 59th birthday by making a special contribution to the Reeve Foundation today. Your generosity will ensure that this promising research, research that meant so much to Christopher Reeve, keeps going forward. There is nothing he would have wanted more. Thank you. With gratitude, Peter T. Wilderotter President and CEO Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation PS: The movement to find cures that Christopher Reeve began more than 15 years ago, continues to depend on people like you. Please help us honor his memory by making an extra generous birthday contribution today.