In memory of Judy Ann W. – Diagnosed at age 12

I want to thank your organization for building the knowledge and service for lupus patients.

My wife Judy Ann was diagnosed with lupus at age 12. They told her she would not see 16, then 21, then I think they said another age, but she lived until she was 55, and really did not die of lupus but complications from her health and while at the hospital they left her bed rails down and she fell out of bed onto her head and passed away. They said with her health, they could not prove that the fall caused her death.

Anyway, she was a very strong person that NEVER said, “why me?” and would get very upset with people that did. I was in law enforcement and my county attorney, when he left office, took her case and FOUGHT all the way through many courts, and it ended up that she was the VERY FIRST person to ever receive Social Security Disability for lupus. They used her case law for many years and may still use it, so she will be remembered for many years to come. Kind of interesting, after this case, his wife was diagnosed with lupus and died within the past 5 years. I have seen him in court, making doctors scratch their head with questions and he can really talk their language when it comes to lupus.