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White Castle couple pledges $10M for autism research

markmc20001

Guest
Messages
877
http://www.thelantern.com/campus/white-castle-couple-pledges-10m-for-autism-research-1.1837657

In the face of a disorder whose cause and cure remain a mystery to doctors, Marci Ingram and husband Bill, White Castle Systems CEO, have pledged a $10 million donation for collaborative autism research to Ohio State and Nationwide Children's Hospital.

We need more rich folks to donate, and more importantly, to donate to organizations that really want to help like the WPI.
 

maryb

iherb code TAK122
Messages
3,602
Location
UK
Thats fantastic news for parents of autistic children - hope it leads to something positive. You're right about needing more organizations that really want to help. It wouldn't be so bad if more high profile celebrities came forward but it seems to be an illness they hide away with and then come back (after having mega bucks treatment) to say they've recovered. My view is if enough of the right investigations were done when the illness first hits and appropriate treatment given then I think the recovery rate would be much higher.
 

Merry

Senior Member
Messages
1,378
Location
Columbus, Ohio, USA
I will make a point to eat at the nearby White Castle as a little thank you to Marcy and Bill.

Any chance the researchers at OSU and Nationwide Children's Hospital will conduct an XMRV study? (Haven't read The Lantern story yet.)

My thanks to you also, markmc, for posting this news. I'm sure my father had Asperger's and one brother probably also would qualify for the diagnosis. A second brother certainly has some autistic characteristics in his behavior (plus gluten intolerance).
 

markmc20001

Guest
Messages
877
Thats fantastic news for parents of autistic children - hope it leads to something positive. You're right about needing more organizations that really want to help. It wouldn't be so bad if more high profile celebrities came forward but it seems to be an illness they hide away with and then come back (after having mega bucks treatment) to say they've recovered. My view is if enough of the right investigations were done when the illness first hits and appropriate treatment given then I think the recovery rate would be much higher.

Hi Maryb, and Merry.

I hope it is good news for autistic children. However, I have CFIDS, and my dimentia has gotten to the point where I probably already know what aspergers is like. I wouldn;t be suprised if they have very similar causes. Lets hope they put the money to good use and we all benefit.

Sorry to hear about all the troubles in your family Merry. Kind of why I'm afraid to have a kid. May not have the energy to raise him/her and it would be extra rough if the child ended up with a similar illness.

As for hiding away. I can;t blame them, it is hard enough being sick and low key. I can't imagine dealing with the poperatzi. Donating anonymously will get it done too!
 

Merry

Senior Member
Messages
1,378
Location
Columbus, Ohio, USA
Sorry to hear about all the troubles in your family Merry. Kind of why I'm afraid to have a kid. May not have the energy to raise him/her and it would be extra rough if the child ended up with a similar illness.
Hi again, markmc.

Sorry to hear of your cognitive problems. For me that is the most frustrating part of ME/CFS.

I wouldn't say that Asberger's is like dementia. My father was really smart, in some ways, especially at math, at remembering long lists of dates and names (genealogy was a hobby). His language skills were good, except he responded to language literally, couldn't read between the lines. He was baffled by so much social interaction, couldn't seem to read faces or body language. Didn't seem curious about other people's lives or what made them tick. Etc., etc.

My health was not great when I decided to have a child, but at that point I didn't know I had CFS. I would've been too afraid if I'd known what the future held! But I had something of a remission of symptoms during the pregnancy and the first four or five years after my son was born. He is not autistic (and is in fact very social), and he does not have CFS.

But he is so alarmed by the news about XMRV that, he told me recently, he's decided not to have children.

Neither of us has been tested for the retrovirus.

I wish you the best, markmc. Thanks again for the encouraging information.