Cooper Hilt’s Mitzvah Project

Make a gift to support Cooper’s project today!

Cooper and Asher Hilt

For my Bar Mitzvah project, I would like to promote awareness of the importance of genetic testing for people contemplating starting a family. I am raising money for the ML4 Foundation in memory of my Uncle Aaron who was diagnosed with Mucolipidosis IV (ML4), an extremely rare Jewish genetic disorder when he was a child.  Throughout his lifetime, Aaron experienced significant psychomotor and cognitive delays. He suffered from corneal clouding, progressive retinal degeneration, and blindness. He could not walk, talk, or see. He was unable to provide for himself in any of the recognized Activities of Daily Living. My Uncle Aaron passed away before I could meet him.  Please consider donating to the ML4 Foundation through my page and help provide needed research and support for the families impacted by this disease.

Sincerely,
Cooper Hilt

Our Uncle Aaron

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ABOUT THE ML4 FOUNDATION

ML4 is a genetic disease caused by the mutation of a single gene that results in the loss of a protein (MCLN1). This incredibly important protein is required by the body for normal functioning: without MCLN1, children and adults with ML4 suffer from progressive and debilitating loss of gross and small motor function, go blind, develop problems chewing and swallowing, rarely have the ability to speak, cannot walk, and over time, lose many abilities that they work hard to acquire when they are young.

The funds raised by the ML4 Foundation are directed to a research program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. We have been working for several years with a team there to create a gene therapy to treat ML4. We are also funding a large-scale natural history study of ML4, bringing ML4 patients from around the world to the MGH clinic to be seen by specialists in this disease. YOUR DONATIONS made this work possible and allow it to continue at a speedy pace!

If you prefer to donate by check, you may mail it to the following address, and note that it is given in honor of Cooper’s Bar Mitzvah.

Mucolipidosis IV Foundation
1440 Spring Street NW
Atlanta, Georgia 30309

The ML4 Foundation is a U.S. 501 (c)(3) nonprofit charitable organization.
Tax ID 13-3633501