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our story

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How it
all began

Before Team Joseph began, there was just a devastating diagnosis for a sweet 5-year-old boy. Within 24 hours of a doctor appointment and extensive bloodwork, Joseph went from being a little boy who struggled to climb steps, to a newly-diagnosed Duchenne muscular dystrophy patient who would face unimaginable obstacles and struggle.

At the same time, his mom went from naive and unaware of rare diseases, to a fierce and committed advocate who refused to accept the devastating prognosis without a fight. Starting with a group of friends sitting around her dining room table, she created a team dedicated to funding groundbreaking research and directly helping families affected by Duchenne.

I made a silent promise to him that I would fight for him quote icon

A note from Joseph’s mom

Thirteen years ago, a neurologist who I’d known for about eight minutes, explained that Joseph has Duchenne. There was no treatment and no cure. He continued, explaining that Duchenne is a progressive, degenerative muscle wasting disease that would steal Joseph’s ability to walk, to sit up, to use his arms. And it would attack his heart and lungs. 

I looked at my little boy playing with a puzzle on the floor, and I made a silent promise to him that I would fight for him. I would leave no stone unturned. I would channel my grief into something that would help him. 

With the proceeds from our first sold-out golf outing, I launched Team Joseph. I spent my days, and many long nights, researching Duchenne and calling scientists and looking for answers and finding out there really weren’t any. Since then, the collective force of the Duchenne community has moved the needle so far. 

I’ve learned that we cannot choose the hand we’ve been dealt, but we can choose how we play our cards. I’ve learned that there is always hope and that there are small miracles along the way. Although this disease is brutal, we have laughed more than cried. Celebrated more than grieved. We’ve been given this one life, and we're going to live the heck out of it.

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fighting for all boys

Although Joseph is our original inspiration, Team Joseph fights for all children and young adults battling this disease. We’ve made it our mission to fund the most promising, cutting-edge research so that we can create a better future.

In the time since Team Joseph began, there has been incredible progress in research. But, while we wait for a treatment or a cure for every boy with Duchenne, we have to take care of each other right now. No one should have to navigate this alone so, with our partners at Little Hercules Foundation, we launched an assistance program to help families with immediate needs. 

We will continue to pay attention to the needs of our community. We’ll ask questions. We’ll listen. We’ll do whatever we can to make the journey lighter for every Duchenne patient and their family.