Swimming for a cure with Peter F.

Bolder action:
Got in the water

What led you to this action?
My brother and I were inspired to start Team Hydro in 2008 by the courage of our sister, Kate, who lives in chronic pain caused by a little-know condition known as hydrocephalus. In the past few years Kate has undergone over 100 brain surgeries in attempts to treat her condition, and she has been hospitalized in intensive care for the past 7.5 months.

Every year Team Hydro swims from Alcatraz to San Francisco to raise funds and awareness for hydrocephalus research.
Hydrocephalus is a life-threatening condition affecting the brain and there is no cure...YET! The only treatment involves highly-invasive brain surgery to insert a device (called a shunt) into the brain. Shunts remain the single most-likely-to-fail implantable medical device (50% fail in 2 years or less) and hydrocephalus is the leading cause of brain surgery in children.

You can sponsor our swim by visiting http://tinyurl.com/help4hydro. 100% of donations go toward the the 501(c)(3) non-profit Hydrocephalus Association's Kate Finlayson Research Grant and all contributions are fully tax-deductible. With your help, we can bring hope to the lives of the 1 million+ Americans suffering from hydrocephalus!

Are you still doing this action?
Yes, in 2008 just four of us took the plunge into the icy waters off Alcatraz. On June 6th I will lead the 100 members of TEAM HYDRO 2010 in the annual Sharkfest swim from Alcatraz Island to San Francisco. Our goal is to raise enough to sponsor a year's worth of hydrocephalus research: $55,000! This is no small task when you consider NIH funding for the condition has historically only been around $650,000 annually!