Association welcomes new Board members

The CFIDS Association of America has added three new members to its Board of Directors for 2003 and bids farewell to two valued members.

Joining the Board are Barbara Comerford, JD, Joseph Lane and Mark Peterson, DDS. Comerford has been practicing Social Security disability, private long-term disability and personal injury law for more than 17 years. She is a person with CFIDS who considers herself largely recovered. She also has taught disability law.

Lane is director of the Center for Assistive Technology at the State University of New York at Buffalo, a multi-disciplinary entity conducting research, training and service programs for people with disabilities. He also has established AZtech Inc., a not-for-profit company run by and for people with disabilities. Lane’s interest in CFIDS stems from his wife’s battle with the illness. He has served on the Association’s Medical Research Advisory Commit-tee, helping to design the research symposia series.

Dr. Peterson is an orthodontist who has suffered with CFIDS since the early 1990s.  He has a keen interest in the Association’s public policy program and fundraising activities. Dr, Peterson, his wife Frances and his parents, Dr. Tom and Mrs. Margaret Peterson, participated in the Association’s 2002 Lobby Day. He provided funding for, and was featured in, the Association’s first Snapshots of CFIDS publication.

The Board’s leadership remains the same, with Jonathan B. Sterling as chairman; Jane Perlmutter as vice-chairman; Patti Schmidt as secretary; and Richard Baldwin as treasurer. Other Board members include Beth A. Levine, Adrianne Ryan and John. S. Trussler.

Leaving the Board this year are Mac Sasser and John Ginsberg. The Association thanks both for their valuable service, and wishes them well.

Annual fund fares well

More than 1,700 Association friends contributed to the 2002 Annual Fund, raising a total of $251,865 to help meet the ongoing need for flexible, unrestricted income.

The Annual Fund drives the Association’s efforts in CFIDS education, public policy and research — moving us closer to achieving our mission of conquering CFIDS. Gifts to the campaign help strengthen our voice on Capitol Hill; harness the talents of health educators and other leaders who care deeply about people with CFIDS; unleash the tenacity of a skilled professional staff dedicated to working on behalf of the CFIDS community; and tap the potential of researchers and clinicians striving to unlock the mysteries of the illness and bring improved health to those who suffer.

In a difficult year, your solid support was vital. Thank you for your generosity and faith in The CFIDS Association of America.

Complete financial results will be available in the Association’s 2002 Annual Report due out in June.

CFIDS ad runs in Times

A special thanks to the Faith and James Knight Foundation for a grant that helped The CFIDS Association share its message with the two million readers of The New York Times. Each November, the Times opens the holiday season with “Giving,” an annual section devoted to philanthropy. The Association was able to run a quarter-page ad with a headline that read, “CFIDS is more than just fatigue — just ask any of the one million Americans who suffer” (see photo). The text offered more information about the illness and encouraged people to join the fight against CFIDS.