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.