An Event to Support the DC 5K Team Walking for Tessa & PANDAS/PANS Research

Our event on the 5th will be a chance for people to learn more about PANDAS/PANS, to hear about the incredible strength of Terry, Tessa, and her family since Tessa was diagnosed, and to hear how your support of the DC 5K team can help move the needle forward on research, early diagnosis, and treatment for these staggering disorders. Terry has been instrumental in advocacting for the construction of the new Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Center at Valley Medical Center and she has helped countless families navigate the diagnosis and treatment labyrinth in the Bay Area and beyond.

Paul Murphy serves as the Treasurer of The Alex Manfull Fund and has been an advocate for behavioral health and healthcare in New England and California for 35 years.

Come enjoy some wine and snacks with us and others.

The Alex Manfull Fund (TAMF) is hosting its third annual 5K Run/Walk* at Hains Point in Washington, DC this April. We hope once again to raise $100,000 through this event.

If you are unable to attend but would like to make a tax free contribution of $25, $50, $100 or more to our 5K team please use the link below:

https://givebutter.com/TAMF5K2025/tessas-trotters/paulmurphy3

To see a video from last year's 5K please follow this link:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/479928698300986

The Alex Manfull Fund recognizes the mental health crisis plaguing our nation’s youth and seeks to raise awareness, advance education of medical providers, and support more research to understand the role that infection and the immune system play in psychiatric disorders. Referred to by various names -- post-infectious neuroimmune disorders, PANDAS, PANS, Autoimmune Encephalitis -- these disorders look like mental illness but have a different cause and require different types of treatment to provide lasting recovery. These disorders, initially thought to only impact the pediatric population, clearly also affect adolescents and young adults at alarming rates and yet are very responsive to treatment, especially when identified early. Alex Manfull, for whom the Fund is named, died due to complications of PANDAS. Had she been diagnosed earlier and received appropriate treatment for PANDAS, she would be with us today.

A portion of the funds raised by this event in the past have supported the “PANDAS/PANS and Other Neuroimmune Disorders” (POND) Brain Bank at Georgetown University and a special project at Georgetown University Medical School as well as ongoing important research funded by The Alex Manfull Fund.

We invite you to help us realize our vision that no life ever again be cut short – or interrupted – by any post-infectious neuroimmune disorder. Our work to make that vision a reality -- raising awareness, providing education to healthcare professionals, and supporting research -- all requires funding.

Host or Publisher NAPPA and The Alex Manfull Fund