Reaching for The Stars, A Foundation of Hope for Children with Cerebral Palsy, Merges with the Cerebral Palsy Foundation Powerful New Entity Will Increase Impact In The CP Community

The Cerebral Palsy Foundation (CPF), a sixty-year old foundation based in New York City and a leading voice in the world of Cerebral Palsy and disabilities, announced today that Reaching for the Stars, A Foundation of Hope for Children with Cerebral Palsy (RFTS), one of the largest parent-led global CP nonprofits, will become part of CPF.
The merger of these two leading organizations in the field of cerebral palsy and disability will leverage the organizations’ unique strengths and complementary capabilities to advance the field in new and innovative ways.

Cynthia Frisina, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Reaching for the Stars, an educator, and leader in the field, will join CPF as Vice President of Partnerships, managing the foundation’s growing national and global footprint, as well as its grants portfolio. The RFTS executive board – Wendy Sullivan, Michael Kutcher, Brad Searle and Dr. Lisa Thornton – will also become part of the CPF family, becoming members of a newly formed Advisory Circle, tasked with informing and evolving CPF’s many efforts

Said Cynthia Frisina, “Bringing together Reaching for the Stars and the Cerebral Palsy Foundation is an exciting move forward in connecting our shared capabilities and advancing progress for the entire field. Our unified vision of transforming lives for people with cerebral palsy through research, innovation, and collaboration will create new opportunities and significant near-term impact.”

CPF’s key initiatives focus on improving early detection of CP, improving inclusion in schools, and developing technology platforms which offer a wide range of resources to help people with CP and their families better manage challenges and issues. CPF also provides a robust stream of social media content to help change the way we all look at disability. To date, the Foundation’s video resources have generated over 75 million views.

The Foundation’s work informs, connects, and empowers people with cerebral palsy and related disabilities and their families. Reaching for the Stars, with their strong family-centric focus and advocacy leadership, will add a huge multiplier to these efforts.

The new entity will retain the name the Cerebral Palsy Foundation.