Sixth-Graders Aim To Raise $500,000 In 3 Weeks To Help Cure Classmate's Rare Disease
IPSWICH (CBS) -- Sixth-graders at Ipswich Middle School are on a mission to save a life.
Fellow classmate Talia Duff has CMT4J, an incredibly rare genetic disease, that weakens the muscles, not unlike ALS.
With the creation of a touching Youtube video that the students hope will go viral, they are campaigning to raise $500,000 in three weeks.
Talia's parents created CureCMT4J, a nonprofit that funds gene therapy to help cure the disease, and have raised half a million dollars already.
An additional $500,000 is needed by the end of the year to forward the research from preclinical testing to trying for FDA approval and a human clinical trial.
Talia's daily activities are already limited by the disease, her school said, "she is confined to a wheelchair and needs daily respiratory therapy to stabilize her breathing."
Classmates are also selling CureCMT4J Cookie Mix Jars at a school concert.
Visit www.curecmt4j.org to learn more or donate. Share the video using the @CureCMT4J and #WeNeedAnAngelDonor or #RUDuffEnough.