Remembering Scott

The first year was a numbing fog of grief, the second year lifted the fog and revealed with brutal clarity what lay ahead, and the third year was one of unexpected possibilities and experiences in this brave new life. In December, I went on my first "solo" travel experience. While I prefer planning my own trips, I decided to go on a tour so I could travel with people but not be responsible for anyone. I went to Costa Rica for a week and had a wonderful time - I saw wildlife in the jungles and waters of Tortuguero, whitewater rafted on the Sarapiqui River, and ziplined through the cloud forest of Monteverde. I had never gone ziplining before and thought I might be nervous, especially since the cloud forest was particularly rainy and windy that day and the trees whipped all around us. But for some reason I felt uncharacteristically calm about it. As I sailed through the clouds, I looked down and saw the tree tops emerging through the mist. I thought of Scott, and how much he wo...

Federally funded scientific research is vital for developing new medical treatments such as the gene-editing treatment described in this NYT article , especially for rare diseases and cancers. Drastic cuts in research funding will slow the discovery and development of new treatments. Please remember this when you contact or vote for your Congressional representatives.   "More than 30 million people in the United States have one of more than 7,000 rare genetic diseases. Most are so rare that no company is willing to spend years developing a gene therapy that so few people would need.   But KJ’s treatment — which built on decades of federally funded research — offers a new path for companies to develop personalized treatments without going through years of expensive development and testing."   "It eventually could also be used for more common genetic disorders like sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis, Huntington’s disease and muscular dystrophy."   "The research...