Dr. Kelly R. Clenchy, Superintendent
33 Shattuck Street,
Littleton, MA 01460
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2019
Media Contact: Jordan Mayblum
Phone: 617-993-0003
Email: jordan@jgpr.net
Littleton Student Makes Cards to Support a Deeply Personal Cause
LITTLETON — For Abby Nordhausen, crafting isn’t just a hobby. It’s a way to raise awareness — and funding for research — among friends and family about a disease she struggles with personally.
Nordhausen, 12, is a seventh grade student at Littleton Middle School. She has Myasthenia Gravis, an autoimmune disease that affects her muscles, causing her legs to ache, her eyelids to droop, and regularly leaves her feeling exhausted.
Although her disease makes it hard for Nordhausen to participate in sports, she’s found her niche in making crafts and artwork. In addition to making cards, she enjoys crafting flowers and decorating her home around the holidays. For example, this Valentine’s Day, she decorated her home with paper hearts.
When she was approximately 9 years old, Nordhausen started selling handmade cards at family parties for $1. Since then, she’s continued to sell cards to family and friends, and has raised $200 to donate to the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America (MGFA) to support research for a cure.
On Monday, Feb. 11, she launched “ASN Cards and Crafts” at abbynord06.wixsite.com/mysite, a website that shares her experience with Myasthenia Gravis, her efforts to raise money for the MGFA by selling cards to friends and family, and also offers tutorials on how to make paper crafts. Her older sisters, Emma, 16, and Anna, 15, helped her create the site.
“I decided to donate because I’ve always wanted to sell cards, but I don’t really need a lot of money,” Nordhausen said. “Because I have my family, and I’m lucky. I decided to donate the money so it can help spread awareness and let other people know about Myasthenia Gravis.”
“I just thought it would be a cool hobby to have, and to teach other people how to make these crafts,” she added. “I always have people asking, how do you do that? I decided to make a website to share it with everyone.”
Nordhausen said her favorite cards to make are birthday and thank-you cards.
“Abby is one of the nicest kids I’ve ever come across in my entire life,” said Littleton Middle School Principal Cheryl Temple. “It does not surprise me at all that she’d want to give to others.”
“They’re fun,” Nordhausen said. “They make people happy.”
Since she launched her website earlier this week, Nordhausen said she’s gotten a lot of support and interest from her classmates.
“Everyone has liked it,” She said. “I feel like it’s cool to let everyone know about my disease. They think it was actually a cool idea because I’m not just doing it to get money for myself. I’m doing it to share awareness about my disease and raise money for the foundation to help other people, not just myself.”
While Abby’s cards are currently open for sale only to friends and family, those interested in donating to the MGFA on her behalf can do so by clicking here and donating to support her family’s team for the Boston Myasthenia Gravis walk on Sat., May 4.
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