In August 2022, our lives changed forever when our sweet, silly, and endlessly lovable son David was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD)—a rare genetic disorder that affects roughly 1 in every 3,500 boys. While the diagnosis was heartbreaking, our journey has been filled with resilience, learning, and hope.

Now, three years in, we’ve seen firsthand how Duchenne impacts families—not just emotionally and physically, but financially. From medical bills and equipment to travel for clinical trials and home adaptations, the costs are staggering. And yet, every child deserves joy, and every parent deserves to witness it.

Thanks to your generosity, Find Your David has raised nearly $300,000 through our past three holiday campaigns. Together, we’ve:

Delivered gift cards to 280+ families
Helped make homes more accessible
Supported travel for clinical trials
Funded a $30,000 cardiac research grant
Sponsored families attending the PPMD conference
Partnered with JB’s Keys to DMD for Bruins games and adaptive ski weekends
Launched an entrepreneurship program for those living with DMD
Launched a program intended to advance STEM skills in young men and boys living with DMD

This year, we’re continuing those efforts—and launching something new.

For years, JB’s Keys to DMD has been a supporter of the Duchenne Program at UMass Chan Medical School (UMass). This Duchenne-focused medical clinic is the largest in the country, and is an absolute necessity to hundreds of families like ours. Currently, there is a lack of funding available to UMass, and all other university-backed medical programs throughout the country, which rely heavily on NIH funded research grants.

For families like ours, there is a lot of time spent at the clinic. Multiple times per year, DMD patients sit in waiting rooms while teams of specialists do their rounds. We are so incredibly grateful and fortunate to have UMass in our backyard, and are always striving to support the clinic and make the patient experience the best it can possibly be. That’s why, with your support, we are attempting to add activities to help patients both pass the time and find a sense of community. We are hoping to add pre-loaded video game consoles, gaming carts, and create a community area where families can interact socially.

💙 An Update on David:

David turned 7 in June of this year, and entered the 2nd grade this school year. Thanks to the support of the Mansfield Public School system, he really loves school and is especially interested in science, math and art. With some encouragement, David enrolled in a local after-school STEM program where he is exposed to science, math, coding and robotics - all things he loves!

This past summer, with the help of an incredible teacher, coach and human being, David learned to swim independently - definitely his proudest accomplishment of 2025! He continues to be his funny, curious and sweet self, and is a great son, brother, grandson, cousin and friend.

For the past two years, David has been participating in a clinical trial that has produced some optimistic data. We will continue to monitor this trial, and also any and all future trials that he may qualify for.

💙 Your 2025 Donations Will Support:

Holiday gift assistance for families living with Duchenne
ADA-accessible Bruins game experiences
Adaptive ski weekends at Loon Mountain for families
Continued development of our newly launched Workforce & Entrepreneurship Transition Program
Continued development of our newly launched STEM enrichment program
Patient experience improvements for the Duchenne Program at UMass Chan Medical School

We hope you’ll join us again this holiday season. Your support brings joy, relief, and opportunity to families who need it most.

Together, we can make a meaningful difference.

Find Your David 2025