Message from the Chair

By Steve Sabatini, Chair of the Epilepsy Foundation

March was a huge month for the Epilepsy Foundation. We hosted the largest gathering of people concerned about epilepsy in history on March 29th—the second annual National Walk for Epilepsy—and then turned around literally the next day and welcomed families and more than 70 kids to our Nation’s Capitol for the Public Policy Institute and Kids Speak Up! Program. The families and kids came from all across the U.S. to bring their stories of living with epilepsy to legislators on Capitol Hill.

The first event, the Walk, brought more than 8,000 people from across the country to the heart of Washington on the National Mall. The Walk successfully mobilizes an enormous group and facilitates a dialogue among people who all share the same concerns and issues about epilepsy. It also gives the Epilepsy Foundation heightened visibility and attracts a lot of attention from the media. We are extremely fortunate to have Greg Grunberg, star of NBC’s Heroes, as our champion and Chairman of the Walk. He generates a lot of enthusiasm and is clearly committed to this cause. It was also important to have three players from the NFL there to show their support. Alan Faneca of the New York Jets, Geoff Pope of the Super Bowl-winning New York Giants and Samari Rolle of the Baltimore Ravens sent a powerful message out to the public that people with epilepsy can achieve whatever they want in life. These guys are really helping to get the message out about epilepsy and eliminate the stigma.

The Public Policy Institute and Kids Speak Up! events were also successful. I’ve been up on the Hill several times for banking issues, but this was different—it was a lot more personal. In the past I was talking about regulation and economics, but this is much more important, it’s about people’s lives. The kids make a big impact because they’re prepared and articulate, so the legislators and aides really listen to them. They’re totally sincere in sharing their experiences about how epilepsy has affected their lives and they’re asking for help from elected officials.
It’s very powerful.

After both of these incredibly inspiring events, I believe more than ever that
we have the momentum and support to achieve our goal of not another moment lost to seizures.