Washington, D.C., April 12, 2018\u2014The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)\u00a0has announced the latest news regarding the upcoming 35th Anniversary Celebration presenting the Rare Impact Awards on May 17 in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
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Master of Ceremonies, Patricia Richardson<\/strong><\/p>\n Emmy Award nominated actress\u00a0Patricia Richardson\u00a0will join us as our Master of Ceremonies. Patricia has long been part of the NORD family, having hosted several events over the years as well as contributing a public service announcement, engaging as an advocate on social media, and volunteering for\u00a0CurePSP<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Rare Impact Award Honoree, The Honorable Frank Pallone<\/strong><\/p>\n Congressman Frank Pallone\u00a0(R-NJ) has recently been announced as a 2018 Rare Impact Award honoree. Congressman Pallone represents New Jersey’s Sixth Congressional District. Throughout his tenure in Congress, his legislative accomplishments have been geared to the protection and restoration of environmental resources and making health care more affordable and accessible.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Performing Artist, Michael Smedley<\/strong><\/p>\n The evening will include a special performance at the piano by the talented\u00a0Michael Smedley, who lost his sight due to CRB1 retinal disease, a rare genetic degenerative disease. Michael is the teenaged son of Kristin Smedley, Pennsylvania Ambassador for the Rare Action Network, who heads up the\u00a0Curing Retinal Blindness Foundation<\/a>\u00a0on behalf of those living with CRB1 retinal disease, including her two sons.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The 2018 event is presented with support from benefactor sponsors Sanofi Genzyme and Shire, gold sponsors Alexion Pharmaceuticals, CSL Behring, GlaxoSmithKline, and Novartis, silver sponsors Alnylam, Amicus Therapeutics, Dohmen, Foundation Medicine, Horizon, Invitae, Sarepta, Spark Therapeutics, Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Worldwide, and bronze sponsors Achillion, Asklepion, Avexis, Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C., Incyte, Insmed, Recordati Rare Diseases, Retrophin, Selecta Bio, Sobi, and Stealth Biotherapeutics.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n To purchase tickets, visit\u00a0rareimpact.org\/awards.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Washington, D.C., April 12, 2018\u2014The National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD)\u00a0has announced the latest news regarding the upcoming 35th Anniversary Celebration presenting the Rare Impact Awards on May 17 in … <\/p>\n