Elisha (K’11), Meital (K’14) and Yakira (K’20) Galler founded the Hope Time Cure Epilepsy Foundation in 2013 to raise awareness and education for epilepsy. They started this foundation because of their personal connection to epilepsy. In 2005, their brother Elan was diagnosed with epilepsy as a four year old.
Since 2013, the Galler’s have been working to educate people about epilepsy and inclusion. They have hosted education and awareness events at multiple schools in the Greater Boston Area. Since 2014, they have used their Run4Purple Marathon team as both a fundraiser and as an opportunity to drive their mission forward by educating gap year students in Israel, who then take their knowledge with them in their next stage of life. These represent just a few of the events they have hosted over the last 9 years.
Time and again the work they have done educating people, has enabled individuals to react knowledgeably and calmly when encountering someone having a seizure. These programs have also enabled people with epilepsy to feel more comfortable talking publicly about their personal experiences with epilepsy.
The Gallers work collaboratively with the Massachusetts General Hospital Pediatric Epilepsy Program planning and funding programs. Over the last three years, they have funded the Sunflower Syndrome Symposium, a program that brings together patients with Sunflower Syndrome and their families from around the world. Sunflower syndrome is a rare form of photosensitive epilepsy, where light triggers people with this condition to compulsively hand-wave in front of their face. Doctors often misdiagnose this condition as a tic-disorder. The goal of the Sunflower Symposium is for families to learn about current research, as well as to meet other patients who have similar experiences.
Most recently, the Hope Time Cure Epilepsy Foundation was supported by both the Maimonides School and Gann Academy at their annual rivalry basketball game. Players received HTC purple socks unifying all of the players as well as showing their support for our cause. Players and fans were inspired by the words of Chanda Gunn, a former U.S. Olympic Hockey Player whose daily life is affected by her seizures, but who continues to fight for greater understanding and inclusion for individuals with disabilities.
To learn more about Hope Time Cure visit www.hopetimecure.org, follow them on social media (@hopetimecure), or contact them at elisha@hopetimecure.org.
