Zoe Petropoulos, the face of the Flicker of Hope Foundation is coming of age in a few days. To celebrate her 21st birthday she will bravely face one of her great fears, to help those living with the rare genetic disorder Neurofibromatosis (NF).
The courageous young Greek Australian from Melbourne plans to jump from a plane on 20 November, in a tandem skydive from 15,000 feet, and she calls on the community to support her cause.
“It’s my dream that I’ll be able to raise $1 for every single one of those 15,000 feet I fall!’ Ms Petropoulos says in a statement as she continues to represent and empower thousands of Australians who live with the fear of the unknown due to the lack of research in treating this chronic disease they were born with.
Neurofibromatosis is a condition which causes tumours to be created in the brain, spinal cord and nerves. Though these tumours are usually not cancerous, they can cause bone deformities, learning disabilities, hearing and vision loss and chronic pain throughout the body.
“I was diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis (NF) at just four months of age. Not many people have heard of NF. My family had no idea about NF. As we discovered, there was very little known about NF, very few treatments, and no cure”, Ms Petropoulos adds.
“This makes the fear of living with NF very real – you need to put your trust in others, and hope that in the future with advances in medical research, there will be hope for those living with NF.”
The pathway for each person affected by it, is both different and unpredictable, and fear of what may happen is significant.
In 2018, her family decided to kick off the much needed medical research by establishing the Flicker of Hope Foundation to raise the necessary funds.
“In just three years Flicker of Hope has raised and donated over $1M to NF medical research. This research brings hope to those living with NF … to Katie, Bella, Libby, Alex, Claudia, Kim, Caz, Sophie, Hayden, Jasmine, Erin, Lauren, Jarrod, Eddie, Kathy, Shelly, Elizabeth, Faye … and so many more.”
You can also bring hope to the NF community by supporting Zoe’s freefall by heading to https://zoesfreefall.gofundraise.com.au
Every donation is tax deductible and “Your support is very much appreciated.”
