Arkansas Children’s Hospital received the proceeds from the grant and applied the funds to the Miller McNeil Woodruff Endowment Trust, established by the Woodruff family.

Continuing To Further the Progress

In April 2016, the Whitaker and Woodruff Foundations teamed up again in the 5th annualCupcakes & Cocktails celebration and fundraising event in Miller Woodruff’s honor. Members of the Whitaker Foundation volunteered their time in pre­event preparations and attended the event itself.

During the festivities, guests receive cupcakes with candles as a tribute to Miller Woodruff’s birthday, March 28th. Miller’s father, Patrick Woodruff says, “When 1,000 people sing happy birthday to Miller, it is the highlight of the evening.”

After extinguishing the candles, the event continued to the silent auction portion. Items donated by local businesses went up for bid to participating guests. The amount raised totaled over $210,000.
About Miller McNeil Woodruff

Miller McNeil Woodruff arrived on March 28, 2011. He appeared healthy and thrived for his first few weeks at home. When his developmental reflexes and activity level seemed less advanced than other infants his age, Miller’s parents sought medical attention.

Doctors at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock diagnosed Miller with Spinal Muscular Atrophy in June 2011. The condition occurs in 1 out of every 10,000 babies, but 1 in 50 adults carry the genetic malady. It is the number one cause of death for infants. At the time of his diagnosis, Miller’s parents were unaware of the disease.

Tests revealed that Miller had type 1 SMA, and would not likely reach his first birthday. After weeks of intensive care from medical professionals and his family, he passed away on June 23, 2011.

Recent Advancements In SMA Research

Spinal Muscular Atrophy affects the cells and nerves that control muscle movement, including automatic functions like breathing and swallowing. The genetic mutation that causes SMA inhibits the production of a protein that allows the nerve cells to properly function. Without the protein, muscles, and their corresponding movements diminish. On August 1, 2016, the pharmaceutical companies Biogen and Ionis announced that their collaborative efforts produced a potential treatment for infants with type 1 SMA. After a three­phase trial, the results provided sufficient evidence to file for FDA approval of the medicine.

The companies intend to treat all four types of SMA with their formulations.

Our Role In Research

The Whitaker Foundation supports organizations whose primary mission is to aid in research and assistance for children with medical conditions like Miller’s. By contributing to their goals, we are able to fulfill our purpose of serving children and their families during intense periods in their lives.

For more information about our grants, and application process, please click here.

The post Cupcakes And Cocktails, An Occasion To Celebrate appeared first on Whitaker Family Foundation.

For the last month or so, the people at Blue Zoo Creative have been working very hard to bring to life our vision for this website, with state-of-the-art features for easier use, as well as special formatting to allow you to view and use our site on mobile devices.

We hope that you like our new site, and will easily find all the information you need.

Features

You will notice that we have included a Resources page for those interested in learning more about foundation and corporate giving or other assistance for non-profits, as well as for those interested in supporting other non-profits.

We also give an overview of our Programs and the Application Process, as well as information about past giving on our Grant Reports page.

Please feel free to browse our new site, and tell us what you think!

The post Announcing Our New Website! appeared first on Whitaker Family Foundation.