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September 2, 2010

Hannah's Hope wins Pepsi Refresh funding

Second place in national contest

By ANDREA VanVALKENBURG Staff Writer

PLATTSBURGH — Hannah's Hope founders say overwhelmingly community support has helped them win $250,000 in Pepsi Refresh Project funding.

"You made this happen for us, and we are very grateful," Matt Sames told supporters in an e-mail Wednesday.

Hannah's Hope was created by the Sames family and friends after 6-year-old Hannah Sames was diagnosed with giant axonal neuropathy, a genetic disorder that eventually takes away a person's ability to walk, speak and swallow.

Matt, Hannah's father, graduated from Plattsburgh High School, and her mother, Lori Burnell, is a Beekmantown native.

Throughout August, supporters voted for Hannah's Hope in the monthly Pepsi Refresh contest, hoping to help the group place in the top two slots nationwide, which would mean it would win funding.

And that's exactly what happened Wednesday when votes were tallied and Hannah's Hope was announced as the second-place winner.

"We cannot thank (our supporters) enough," Sames wrote about the local voting effort.

The Pepsi funding will be used to help pay for large-animal toxicology studies, pre and post studies and research facilities to learn more about giant axonal neuropathy.

"We have a long way to go, but this grant makes it a lot easier," Sames said.

E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at: avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com

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