The Eric Fund is honored each year to help incredible children and adults with disabilities maximize their potential and live their dreams.
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Twenty years of giving is not enough for The Eric Fund. We’ve entered our third decade with the same commitment and energy that propelled us to fulfill the mission we dedicated ourselves to 21 years ago. And with your support, we will continue to grow and contribute to greater independence for people with disabilities in the Washington, DC metro area.
This year’s awards will benefit the lives and independence of nine individuals from the Washington area to the tune of more than $21,000, bringing our total donations to more than $230,000 over The Eric Fund’s 21 years of dedication to helping people with disabilities in our community. Thanks to your contributions, this year we have purchased iPads with special applications, an electric wheelchair and scooter, an adaptive tricycle, adaptive computer and video game equipment and a smart device that converts a manual wheelchair to electric, and more.
Our mission is to level the playing field for people with disabilities by providing assistive technology that will enable greater independence in their daily lives. The Eric Fund steps in to help when applicants have exhausted every other avenue of support, whether through insurance, the workplace, school or family resources. And we see the impact of these awards reach beyond our applicants to their families, fellow students, friends, teachers and colleagues.
This year’s awards means The Eric Fund has reached 101 exceptional individuals with equipment that brings greater independence to their lives. We remain the same small band of volunteers committed to our mission and hope you will continue to support us as we enter our third decade of giving.
From all of us at The Eric Fund, we hope you will enjoy the holiday season knowing you have helped some very deserving people in our community. Please continue to share The Eric Fund story with your friends and families.
Sincerely,
President
A young boy with a progressive neuromuscular disease will receive an adaptive tricycle that will develop his strength, mobility and independence. A woman with polio since birth will improve her mobility with a scooter. A DC woman with visual disabilities will receive a magnifying device that will aid and improve her efficiency at work and home. A 14-year-old boy who developed quadriplegia will be able to use electronic devices and once again play video games with his friends. These are just some of the people The Eric Fund was able to assist this year.
The Eric Fund is a Washington-based nonprofit organization that purchases needed but often expensive assistive technology that helps children and adults with disabilities live on their own terms in their communities. “We are both amazed and excited to be entering our third decade of providing equipment and devices to so many wonderful people in our Washington area. Knowing that we – with your help – can make what may be life-changing contributions to such deserving peoples’ lives merely strengthens our resolve to carry on. This year’s more than $21,000 worth of awards surpasses the past 20 years’ awards. We are so grateful for your generosity that allows people in the Washington, DC, area to live more independent lives, “ said Mary Hanley, president of The Eric Fund.
Founded in 1998, The Eric Fund’s mission is inspired by the memory of Eric Savader, who died from cancer in 1997 and who worked on behalf of several disability causes.
Please read on and be amazed by the compelling stories of the 2019 Eric Fund award recipients as well as some of our past awardees you have supported.
The DC City Council honored The Eric Fund with a resolution in November recognizing its “many contributions to people with disabilities in the Washington metropolitan area; and congratulates it on its 20th anniversary.”
The Eric Fund is proud to receive this recognition from the DC City Council and wants to thank At-large Council Member Elissa Silverman for sponsoring the resolution.
Priscilla is a 56-year-old woman from Washington, DC, with visual disabilities and albinism, who works for the DC government. When the existing magnifying screen and reader she received through her job was old and did not work reliably, she sought other options to help her get equipment that would make her job easier.
Stephanie is an active, 41-year-old woman from Springfield, VA, who is part of the Undiagnosed Disease Network at the National Institutes of Health. It has been difficult for Stephanie to get funding for a wheelchair since she doesn’t have an official diagnosis.
Jacob is a 5-year-old boy from Rockville, MD, who has a genetic condition that causes benign tumors to grow throughout his major organs and for Jacob, most notably in the brain. The benign brain tumors have caused epilepsy and developmental delays including speech delays as his greatest challenge.
As The Eric Fund completes its 21st year of providing assistive devices to people with disabilities, we are thrilled by the meaningful impact of your generous donations. Because of your generosity, we are able to provide nine deserving people with equipment that will allow them to live more independent lives.
The Eric Fund is honored each year to help incredible children and adults with disabilities maximize their potential and live their dreams. Here is an update on some of our past winners.
Ammar, now 19, is the older of two autistic twins and one of six children. In 2018, Ammar received an iPad with specialized visual applications to accommodate his abilities as a visual learner. Ammar’s au- tism primarily affects his communication skills and the applications help guide his verbal output. His mom, Kathy, says that Ammar has loved using the iPad and benefitted greatly from the award all year. “He takes it wherever he goes,” she said, thanking The Eric Fund on behalf of their whole family, add- ing touchingly, “Those of you who take time from your lives to help those who struggle with autism are truly giving.”
James, 16, received a communication device from The Eric Fund in 2017 with the financial assistance of the manufacturer and designated donations from Eric Fund supporters. James has hearing loss in both ears and verbal communication challenges. James’s father says that James uses the device with prompting and that it “really helps convey what he’s trying to say.” He said that James is attached to the device and brings it to school and therapy appointments every day. We are inspired by James who continues to work toward a level of independence while having endured two open-heart surgeries, a bone marrow transplant, leukemia and the loss of his mother to cancer. “I am so grateful to The Eric Fund...because it’s so helpful to him,” said James’s dad.
Jake, a 2018 Eric Fund recipient, is now 12 and according to his mom, Chiara, he “has become excited about learning for the first time!” Jake has Down syndrome and autism spectrum disorder, which together makes communication his most difficult challenge. The Eric Fund provided a Dynavox augmentative communication device that helps Jake to communicate. His mom says the device has done so much more than they expected and they are very thankful for the award.
As you can imagine, narrowing the application pool down was difficult, and left many very worthy candidates without the funding they need to lead independent lives in the community. Your generous donations will help us continue to change lives, by putting equipment in the hands of people who desperately need it. Help us expand our reach. More donations means more grants and fewer people we need to turn away each year. We will continue to put every dollar to work!
