Three short weeks ago Grosse Pointe Farms, MI resident Donna DiSante was standing before a standing room only group of congressional staff telling her story of living with autoimmune disease. She’d been asked by the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) to speak at a congressional briefing that the group was sponsoring in partnership with the National Coalition of Autoimmune Patient Groups (NCAPG). To Donna it was a major honor, and yet for a while she wasn’t sure that her autoimmune disease of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) would allow her to accept. “Every day is different, but lately I’ve been in a lot of pain. Maintaining my part-time job and volunteer and church activities have been a challenge. But I was determined to be in D.C. to help spread awareness of these debilitating diseases, even if they had to wheel me in to do it.”
Donna is one of 50 million Americans who have one or more of the 100+ diseases categorized as autoimmune. As a category, autoimmune diseases are the fifth leading cause of death by disease among females ages 15 to 44, and yet fewer than 13 percent of American’s can even name an autoimmune disease.
On May 7, the Saturday before Mother’s Day, there’s another AARDA event that she’s determined that her RA won’t keep her from attending. AARDA’s 11th Annual Victorian Tea Luncheon and auction will be taking place, and it’s an event Donna hasn’t missed in nearly 11 years. “I’ve served on the AARDA Tea Planning Committee for years and actually had the honor of acting as MC of the event last year. It’s a wonderful afternoon and one that I know helps to bring us ever closer to a cure.” The MC duties this year will be taken over by longtime AARDA friend and advocate WDIV Director of Meteorology Chuck Gaidica. The event will feature music and entertainment, auction, raffle, and prizes for hats and ensembles (it’s tradition for guest to attend in Victorian, vintage, or contemporary dress).
Since the congressional briefing in March, Donna has undergone hip replacement surgery; but she continues to ensure that she wins against her autoimmune disease by doing everything that she can to help find a cure through research and awareness. To join Donna in her quest against autoimmune disease, purchase tickets for AARDA’s 11th Annual Victorian Tea Luncheon online at http://aardateaevent.eventbrite.com/ or by calling 586-776-3900. For more information about AARDA and autoimmune diseases visit www.aarda.org.
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