MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Dear Friends,

Since the beginning of the year, we've brought you over 50 issues of our weekly electronic newsletter and we've done so with very little cost to LFNC. We appreciate the many positive feedback we've received and hope that through this newsletter, we will continue to serve the informational needs of our lupus patients and their families as well as our partners in the medical and social services community. All our past e-Newsletter issues are archived HERE. We will take a break for the rest of the year but we promise to be back in January with even more vigor and enthusiasm. Before we take a break, we want to say. . .

Another year is about to come to a close, and we take this opportunity to once again thank you all for the commitment and support that you have given us as we continue to face the challenges and nurture our hopes in the vision of life without lupus.

 This year's approval of the first lupus drug in almost 50 years is only the beginning of renewed energy in the effort to find better treatment - and hopefully a cure-for lupus. Many more potential new drugs are in the pipeline and we continue to look forward to more good news in the months and years to come.

Unfortunately, even with significant scientific and medical advances, the need still remains for greater public awareness and understanding of this disease; informational, medical and support services for lupus patients and their families; and continued partnership with government entities as well as the medical and research community.

2012 marks LFNC's 34th anniversary. So much has been accomplished, yet much more needs to be done. Just as we hope that the pace of new treatment and relief for lupus patients will accelerate in the coming years, we also hope to double the pace and extent of our services: patient education classes, support groups, brown bag sessions,conferences, informational programs, and advocacy for and on behalf of our lupus clients and their families. We also hope to increase our participation in national initiatives to increase available resources for research through our involvement in the Lupus Research Institute National Coalition.

We have recently launched our 2012 Fund Campaign with the theme of "Double the Pace." This campaign will lead up to our annual 5K Run and Walk for Lupus scheduled on June 10, 2012. Your help with this fund campaign will allow us to fulfill our commitment and vision to bridge the gap between life with lupus and life without lupus.

Please contribute what you can to our 2012 Fund Campaign by clicking the "donate" button below.

Happy Holidays!

Sincerely,

Rene M. Astudillo, CMP

Executive Director