A Message from the Foundation President

My name is Louie Schimpf and as the President of The PAP Foundation, I would like to welcome you to our newly established web site and to the PAP community.  As a fellow individual who has lived with Pulmonary Alveolar Proteinosis for 10 years, I can empathize with the experiences that you may be dealing with as a result of this frustrating and debilitating disease. When I was first diagnosed with PAP, I set out to find as much information as I could about this rare lung disease.  To my surprise I could find very little in books and on the Internet about this condition.  I found it frustrating that I couldn’t find the answers to all of the questions that I had.  I wanted to know, why did I have this disease, what was causing it, were there better treatments out there, what could I do to live a normal life with PAP, and would I ever be cured?  The answers I did find were few and far between. It is our goal, with the establishment of The PAP Foundation, to help provide the answers you and your loved ones are seeking.  We will provide you with informational and educational resources pertaining to the latest in PAP research, treatment, and discovery.  We will work to raise the funds necessary to support continuing PAP research, to answer those questions that can’t be answered.  We will work to find a cure! We will provide a support group for you and other PAP patients around the world to get in touch with each other and share your daily struggles, along with your successes.  We have all been through tough times in our lives, often filled with fear, doubt, and uncertainty.  However, if there is one thing that I have learned from this disease, it is that mutual support and faith are the two most important factors in driving away those worries.  I know that with the strength of our small community, and in working together, we can make each other stronger through the bonds of spirit and kinship, and in that, fulfill the mission of The PAP Foundation! I offer my deepest appreciation to everyone for their overwhelming support of our Foundation and for this wonderful opportunity to help others.  It is my honor to be the president of this organization and to serve you.