Dear Friends of Will,

We hope you and your families are well and enjoyed a great summer.

Our son, Will, had his first seizure at nine months old. He’s now 21, and while he still experiences daily seizures due to Cortical Dysplasia and Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS), they’ve become somewhat less frequent and severe. He remains unable to communicate and has an IQ of a two-year old (among other challenges). It is hard to believe it’s been 20+ years since this journey began. We are grateful for your continued support.

This year, to step-up our efforts, we will be participating in two events. We will run and walk to raise support for those with special needs and Will’s amazing school and residence, The Center for Discovery (.org) AND to honor you, our unrelenting pillars of strength and encouragement. We endure and fight on for our son because of you!

‍♂️ Event 1: FOW 24-Hour Walk-a-Thon

Noon, Saturday Nov 22 – Noon, Sunday Nov 23 Cold Spring Harbor High School, Long Island.

Join us for the 6th annual walk-a-thon! We walk for 24 consecutive hours to raise support for The Center for Discovery and to highlight the unending challenges those with special needs and their caregivers face. We walk in pairs and encourage you to join us day or night. As you might imagine, the unending demands of raising a special needs child requires great sacrifice – often, negatively impacting our relationship with you. For that, we apologize. Our annual walk also provides us a much-needed chance to catch up with all of you.

Event 2: NYC Marathon - Sunday, Nov 2

I’ll be running the 2025 NYC Marathon alongside my friend and former teammate Pete McSherry to honor all of you and raise awareness and support for The Center for Discovery. CURE, an organization dedicated to eradicating epilepsy kindly provided my race entry in exchange for a personal donation to fund its research. Pete secured his entry through T.A.P.S, an organization that supports families of fallen service men and women. Please come cheer us on and celebrate afterward! To coordinate, contact any member of my family. If you have never seen the NYC Marathon in person, it’s incredibly inspirational and truly unforgettable.

Your Impact / How to donate

All proceeds raised from both events go to The Center for Discovery (centerfordiscovery.org), a leading facility serving over 1,200 individuals with complex challenges. This year’s funds will be used to replace the roof of its main greenhouse, which supports The Center's belief that food is medicine. Its approach focuses on nutrient-dense, clean, whole foods and integrates farmers, chefs, and nutritionists to maximize the therapeutic power of food. The Center is an amazing place doing amazing things for those with complex challenges.

We hope to see you in November—at the walk, the marathon, or both.

Final Thought

Like Andy in Shawshank Redemption, we have spent 20 years fighting for Will’s future and will not stop “digging” until he’s “free”. We have unrelenting faith that he will be healed, in this life or the next.

With love and gratitude, The Schupler Family

ps. The sun shades you funded were recently installed and are awesome! They will make the playground much more enjoyable and provide great relief from the sun. THANK YOU again.