“Months after we returned home and talked about how nice it was that others went out of their way to do such nice things for others, Angels4Epilepsy, Inc. was started.” - Judy and Jamie Bacigalupo
Angels4Epilepsy is an organization founded by Judy Bacigalupo in 2010. Judy’s then five year old daughter Jamie was diagnosed with Benign Rolandic Epilepsy (BRE) after experiencing seizures in 2008. After visits to two hospitals, Jamie was diagnosed with BRE, a diagnosis given to those who have centrotemporal spikes and no understandable reason for the onset of seizures. Two weeks after being hospitalized, her younger sister, almost one, was also diagnosed with an unknown pulmonary condition. The next several months involved numerous doctor visits, hospitalizations and tests for both girls causing them to become frequent hospital guests. That Christmas, Jamie was scheduled for a sleep study, which involved staying in the hospital to monitor spikes in brain activity. While there, Jamie and Judy had received two sets of visitors that brought therapy dogs and Christmas gifts for the children and another group from a Baptist church that brought more gifts, snacks and McDonald's gift certificates for the parents. During that time, they had a wonderful time despite the circumstances. “Months after we returned home and talked about how nice it was that others went out of their way to do such nice things for others, Angels4Epilepsy, Inc. was started.” They discussed how they could give back to other children and bring smiles to what is a tedious and scary time for both children and their parents. Jamie wanted to draw pictures and bring in toys to help.
Judy and Jamie had their first delivery of gift bags to the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta in June of 2010. Since then, Angels4Epilepsy has delivered again to the Children’s Hospital of Georgia, the Ronald McDonald House, a children’s hospital in Florida, and the Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital and Riley Children’s Hospital in Indiana. “We learned about the Pepsi Refresh Grant project from another non-profit, Operation Sweet Dreams, and applied for a $5,000 grant in August 2010 which we won.” They utilized those funds to form a non-profit organization, obtain 501(c) (3) status, to purchase additional items to deliver more gift bags and future funding endeavors. Utilizing social media, Facebook and Twitter, they got the word out about Jamie and Angels4Epilepsy.
Jamie's sisters, Danielle and April as well as April's fiancé, Cody, help in assembling and delivering the gift bags. In 2010, a connection was established with the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida and Heather Hernandez. In 2011, they expanded with the generous support of volunteers in three additional states. Stacey Burns represents Indiana, Ruth Kidder represents Ohio, Beth Justice Elliott represents North Carolina, April Branam represents Georgia and Jamie, Danielle and Judy represent Texas.
This past August, they applied for another Pepsi Refresh Grant and won $25,000 to continue delivering gift bags, raising awareness. Halfof the grant will be used to purchase USB medical alert bracelets for low income parents in the state of Florida. There is collaboration with the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida, Jacksonville office to handle the distribution among their clients. Another portion will go towards delivering teddy bears from TG Bears, gift bags and fund raising activities. “We also picked up an official mascot by the name of Hernando made by TG Bears.” A portion of sales goes towards Angels4Epilepsy.
The other goal is to raise awareness about epilepsy.
Angels4Epilepsy is an organization founded by Judy Bacigalupo in 2010. Judy’s then five year old daughter Jamie was diagnosed with Benign Rolandic Epilepsy (BRE) after experiencing seizures in 2008. After visits to two hospitals, Jamie was diagnosed with BRE, a diagnosis given to those who have centrotemporal spikes and no understandable reason for the onset of seizures. Two weeks after being hospitalized, her younger sister, almost one, was also diagnosed with an unknown pulmonary condition. The next several months involved numerous doctor visits, hospitalizations and tests for both girls causing them to become frequent hospital guests. That Christmas, Jamie was scheduled for a sleep study, which involved staying in the hospital to monitor spikes in brain activity. While there, Jamie and Judy had received two sets of visitors that brought therapy dogs and Christmas gifts for the children and another group from a Baptist church that brought more gifts, snacks and McDonald's gift certificates for the parents. During that time, they had a wonderful time despite the circumstances. “Months after we returned home and talked about how nice it was that others went out of their way to do such nice things for others, Angels4Epilepsy, Inc. was started.” They discussed how they could give back to other children and bring smiles to what is a tedious and scary time for both children and their parents. Jamie wanted to draw pictures and bring in toys to help.
Judy and Jamie had their first delivery of gift bags to the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta in June of 2010. Since then, Angels4Epilepsy has delivered again to the Children’s Hospital of Georgia, the Ronald McDonald House, a children’s hospital in Florida, and the Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital and Riley Children’s Hospital in Indiana. “We learned about the Pepsi Refresh Grant project from another non-profit, Operation Sweet Dreams, and applied for a $5,000 grant in August 2010 which we won.” They utilized those funds to form a non-profit organization, obtain 501(c) (3) status, to purchase additional items to deliver more gift bags and future funding endeavors. Utilizing social media, Facebook and Twitter, they got the word out about Jamie and Angels4Epilepsy.
Jamie's sisters, Danielle and April as well as April's fiancé, Cody, help in assembling and delivering the gift bags. In 2010, a connection was established with the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida and Heather Hernandez. In 2011, they expanded with the generous support of volunteers in three additional states. Stacey Burns represents Indiana, Ruth Kidder represents Ohio, Beth Justice Elliott represents North Carolina, April Branam represents Georgia and Jamie, Danielle and Judy represent Texas.
This past August, they applied for another Pepsi Refresh Grant and won $25,000 to continue delivering gift bags, raising awareness. Halfof the grant will be used to purchase USB medical alert bracelets for low income parents in the state of Florida. There is collaboration with the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida, Jacksonville office to handle the distribution among their clients. Another portion will go towards delivering teddy bears from TG Bears, gift bags and fund raising activities. “We also picked up an official mascot by the name of Hernando made by TG Bears.” A portion of sales goes towards Angels4Epilepsy.
The other goal is to raise awareness about epilepsy.
- Epilepsy is a disorder and not a disease or mental condition.
- Epilepsy affects nearly 3 million Americans and 50 million people worldwide
- It affects more than 300,000 children under the age of 15.
- More than 90,000 affected children are not adequately treated.
- Epilepsy is the third most common neurological disorder.
- There are many different types of seizures.
- People with epilepsy risk drowning due to the unknown timing of a seizure
- People with epilepsy can die from SUDEP or Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy
"While we try to teach our children all about life...
our children teach us what life is all about. "
- Angela Schwindt
our children teach us what life is all about. "
- Angela Schwindt
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