First Annual Muriel’s Breath of Life Picnic 2010

September 5, 2010

The First Annual Muriel’s Breath of Life Picnic was held on September 5th, 2010 at The Barn at the Richland Township Community Park. The opening event for Muriel’s Breath of Life was a huge success, raising over $25,000 for Cystic Fibrosis patients. The fun filled family day included live music, children’s events, a silent auction, a raffle for a 1 week stay at an Arizona condo, a bonfire and, of course, a delicious family prepared dinner. To see photos of the event, please visit our Facebook page.

Currently, our grants focus on patients at Antonio J. and Janet Palumbo Cystic Fibrosis Center at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh (this is for children up to 21 years of age) and The Adult Cystic Fibrosis Care Program at UPMC’s Comprehensive Lung Center (adults). The Adult and Children’s Programs care for 200 patients from the tristate area. Some patients, like Muriel, came to the center as an adult diagnosed with delayed onset disease but most were transitioned from the care of Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh between the ages of 18 and 21.

The centers provide state of the art medical care for Cystic Fibrosis patients and education for health care professionals. The staff is also actively involved in ground breaking research. Each patient enjoys a dedicated team of pulmonologists, dietitians, social workers and respiratory therapists in addition to access to other UPMC specialists should the need arise.

Dr. Joseph Pilewski and Dr. Joel Weinberg are the current Co-Directors of the Adult Cystic Fibrosis Care Program. Dr. David Ornstein and Dr. Daniel Weiner are the Co-Directors of the Cystic Fibrosis Program at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. In addition to providing compassionate patient centered care, these dedicated physicians are quite active researchers, pioneering new CF therapies and heading up studies of the cellular biology of CF.