Beginning in the early 1950s, when public awareness and understanding of muscular dystrophy and related neuromuscular diseases were extremely limited, MDA began calling upon individuals living with these diseases to serve as National Ambassadors, telling their personal stories and inspiring support of MDA. More than 40 MDA National Ambassadors, including children and adults, have met U.S. . . .
In April, MDA fielded a survey to ask its community how COVID-19 was impacting their lives. We heard your responses — anxiety, questions, hope — and wanted to know more. In this six-part blog series, Hacking COVID, people from MDA’s community, all living with neuromuscular diseases, shared how they’ve altered their day-to-day lives, how they’ve . . .
In 1950, when the Muscular Dystrophy Association was founded, muscular dystrophy and neuromuscular disease weren’t well known or well understood. But they were, as today, affecting an entire community of kids and adults. And so in 1952, MDA made a move to introduce this community of individuals and families to the world. MDA’s National Ambassador . . .
Ethan Lybrand loves his Bumblebee. On Oct. 27, the 7-year-old became the proud owner of his first power wheelchair. Black and yellow, the chair’s color scheme is inspired by, and named after, his favorite Transformers character, Bumblebee. For Ethan, who has Duchenne muscular dystrophy, getting a wheelchair could have been a tough transition. Instead, Ethan . . .
Starting a new school year is hard on every parent and child, but it’s particularly difficult when you have a child with special needs. As a parent you want to make sure that those needs are met all day every day, even if you are not with them. Even after you explain what your . . .
The Lybrand family motto is “finish strong,” which, for them, means never giving up and always turning can’ts into cans. It’s no wonder, then, that the youngest Lybrand, 6-year-old Ethan, is a living embodiment of the Live Unlimited spirit. Just three days before his second birthday, Ethan was diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Although the deadly disease will gradually . . .
