When Corey's daughter Tilly Wilkes was born with Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB) in 2011, it turned his world upside down. The Wilkes family had never heard of the words 'Epidermolysis Bullosa' and to learn of the painful and cruel life their daughter was about to face was devastating.
Once they adjusted to taking care of Tilly and learning to bathe and bandage their newborn’s open wounds, they accepted the fact that Tilly’s condition wasn’t curable, and they were inspired to create awareness amongst their wide network. Corey made a promise to his little girl ,that he will one day find a cure for her.
The Wilkes family established the Cotton Ball, a large biennial Gala event to raise funds for EB. The events were so successful it fuelled their determination to cure their daughter and all EB sufferers. In 2016, the family with some close friends, established their own not-for-profit to raise significant funds to invest into science and medical research that will lead to a cure for Epidermolysis Bullosa.
The EB Research Foundation was born and last week announced they have united with EB Research Partnership USA to become the largest global organization focused on funding research to discover treatments and cures for Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a group of devastating and life-threatening genetic disorders that affect individuals from birth.
Our shared mission to find treatments and cures for EB will be better served by uniting our organizations and driving research further to cure EB as quickly and efficiently as possible and making Corey's promise to his little girl a reality.
