Home      About FD       Donate      About Us      News       Events

 
Presenters, Experts & Participants     Photos      Presentation Abstracts

Thanks to all who attended the 2010 FD Day Conference and helped make it a success. With over 200 registered attendees and over 20 panelists, presenters and experts, it was one of our best FD Days ever! (See a list of panelists, presenters and experts here, and see photos here.)   The day started with a kosher continental breakfast, giving old friends and new acquaintances a chance to spend time together. All attendees were given a goody bag with a commemorative 25th Anniversary silver paper weight, a notebook/pen set, a wildflower bookmark and a hand sanitizer. We also had a representative from the Make-A-Wish Foundation taking referrals from families. If you would like more information, contact Ilene Mandel at imandell@metrony.wish.org   As proceedings began to get underway, children had a chance to have fun with volunteers (some of whom were from Kids of Courage) to play with games and crafts, get photos from our photo favors booth and get personalized T-shirts and hats from our airbrush booth. Shortly thereafter, an animal show featuring exotic animals entertained both kids and volunteers.   Meanwhile for parents and other adults, NYU Langone Medical Center’s Farkas Auditorium served as a stage for Eddie Baranoff, Foundation President, and David Brenner, Executive Director to provide important updates on the Dysautonomia Foundation activities, upcoming events and FD community news. In the middle of their presentations, they surprised Dr. Felicia Axelrod with a plaque recognizing her incredible 40 years of service to the FD community as Director of the Dysautonomia Center. David reminded everyone that the Foundation will presenting a gala tribute dinner in her honor as part of our Blue Genes fundraiser on October 17th.   Featured scientific and medical presentations were given by Horacio Kaufmann, MD, Gil Ast, PhD, Channa Maayan, MD, and Felicia B. Axelrod, MD. (See abstracts of the presentations here.) Dr. Axelrod then presented DYStinguished FD Adult awards to six amazing individuals. Also, for the second year in a row, Lucy Norcliffe-Kaufmann, PhD presented the winners of the FD photo contest, a real crowd pleaser that is sure to become a recurring fixture of future FD Days. (See the winners here and read the judges' comments here. )   The morning proceedings concluded with a new feature: the FD Adults panel. One of the high points of the day, the panel was led by Dr. Axelrod and featured six very impressive individuals talking about their life experiences, their challenges, their families and their accomplishments. The featured adults shared their humor, warmth and sincerity in a truly moving segment that will be remembered by all who attended. Parents, kids and FD adults then got a chance to relax and socialize over a kosher buffet lunch, which was followed by different activities for each group. Kids went to see Magic Al perform his magic and comedy act, followed by a movie. FD adults went to the FD casino, where they were treated to two blackjack tables with professional dealers, a roulette table with a professional croupier, and slot machines. The casino was a big hit, and the Foundation is now investigating the possibility of holding additional casino nights throughout the year.   For their afternoon activity, the parents split up into four groups and got a chance to have in-depth discussions with groups of experts that rotated through each of the parent groups. The experts were divided into four specialties: genetics/research, adult care, pediatrics, and social services / legal issues. The last specialty group, a new feature, dealt with everything from estate planning to school district litigation to assisted living, and it proved to be very popular with the families.   Finally, as the parents and children departed for home, the FD adult group set off for a private party and dinner with Dr. Axelrod, Dr. Kaufmann and Dr. Norcliffe-Kaufmann. This dinner, our biggest yet, with over 30 attendees, gave everyone a chance to unwind from the day's activities while socializing with old and new friends. Everyone agreed, it was the perfect way to end one of the best FD Days ever. Next year's FD Day is scheduled for June 12, and we're already planning on ways to make it even better than this year's. If you want to volunteer, please contact us.

 
Presenters, Experts & Participants     Photos      Presentation Abstracts