Our daughter, Emma, was born on December 28, 2022. From the moment we held her, we were completely in love. She had blonde hair, a beautiful smile, and was an incredibly happy baby. In her first few months, Emma experienced reflux, but it did not initially raise major concerns. Around nine months, however, we began to notice delays in her development. She sat independently at nine months and crawled for the first time at twelve months, but she did not babble or make any vocalizations. Over the next six months, we attended dozens of medical appointments, searching for answers.

On May 2, 2024, Emma was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome. Like so many parents in the community, we had never even heard of Angelman syndrome until that day. The first few weeks were heartbreaking. As we began to process the diagnosis and grieve the future we had imagined for her, we made a promise: Angelman syndrome would not define Emma. We will do everything we can to give her the best life possible.

Like most rare diseases, there is currently no cure or meaningful treatment option for Angelman syndrome. But there is real reason for hope. There is a robust and growing pipeline of promising therapeutics, including two (soon to be three) in Phase 3 clinical trials and several others in earlier stages of development. Meaningful treatment options would be life-changing—not only for our family, but for so many families like ours.

Emma’s Wish Foundation was created to turn that hope into action—for Emma and for others living with Angelman syndrome and rare diseases. We are committed to raising awareness, funding critical research, supporting leading advocacy organizations, and strengthening the broader rare disease community.

We cannot do this alone. It truly takes a village, and we would be deeply grateful for your support—whether by attending an event, making a donation, or helping us spread awareness. Together, we can move closer to better treatments, stronger communities, and a brighter future.

With gratitude,

Mike & Ashley
Proud parents of Isabella, Michael, Emma, and Matthew