I'll be honest with you: not long ago, I couldn't have told you what cystic fibrosis was. Maybe I'd heard it mentioned in the news. But CF became real to me the way the most important things always do... through people I love. There are two amazing people in my life named Dane and Hollis. If you don't know them, you should. I got to learn about their world in the best way possible: attending one of their family Christmases.
 

It was from that Christmas that Hollis lovingly gave me the nickname "Dr. Adz" — a brand I now use for fun (because who doesn't love dancing along to Taylor Swift songs?) and for advocacy: for diversity and inclusion, and against conversion therapy. Hollis lives with CF. And when her mom, Taylor — the woman who pulled me into this family like I'd always belonged there — nominated me for this honor, it became the fullest full-circle moment of my life. I'm still learning about this disease, honestly. But I know exactly who I'm fighting for.
 

Here's what I've learned so far. Nearly 40,000 people in the U.S. are living with cystic fibrosis — a progressive, genetic disease that affects the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. Sixty years ago, most children with CF didn't live long enough to start elementary school. Today, because of research and care fueled by the CF Foundation, median survival is over 50, more than a dozen treatments exist, and decades of life have been added. That's not luck. That's what happens when a community decides a disease doesn't get the final word.
 

But the work isn't finished. Many people with CF still don't benefit from existing therapies, and the vision is bigger than progress — it's a cure for every person with CF, a life free from the burden of this disease, with no one left behind. "No one left behind" isn't an abstract mission statement to me. It has a name. 
 

If you've followed me for a while, you know my platform has always been about one thing: showing up for people and refusing to look away. My advocacy started with my own story. This chapter is hers. So here's my ask: help me reach my goal. Donate what you can, grab a ticket to the Finale Celebration in November, or share this page with someone who loves big. Consider this my giving-back era, and consider yourself invited to help make medical history.
 

To learn more, visit www.cff.org.  


Fighting for Hollis and Dane — and every family taking on CF. Long live the fighters. 💛