Friday, October 6, 2006

Writer:  Rebecca Ayer, 706/583-0578, alea@uga.edu
Contact: Kurinji Pandiyan, 706/202-2234, kurinji@uga.edu

UGA Student Society for Stem Cell to hold candlelight vigil to honor the life of Christopher Reeve

Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia chapter of the Student Society for Stem Cell Research (SSSCR) will hold a candlelight vigil honoring the life of actor and stem cell research advocate Christopher Reeve on the anniversary of his passing, Tuesday, Oct. 10. The event, which is open to the public, will be held in the Davison Life Sciences Complex on the UGA campus at 7 p.m. in room C127.

UGA will be one of a number of schools across the nation hosting the third annual “Nothing Is Impossible” candlelight vigil, part of the SSCR’s Campaign to Cure Paralysis (C2CP). The C2CP's mission is to move the center of mass of public perception and to habituate the public towards viewing spinal cord injury and other causes of paralysis as curable.

Speakers at the vigil will include Steven Stice, director the UGA Regenerative Bioscience Center and a noted stem cell researcher; Ron Grabb, coordinator of the Georgia chapter of the Parkinson’s Action Network; James Shepherd, chairman of the board at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta; and Georgia Sen. David Adelman, Senate Minority Leader and stem cell research advocate.

“It is humbling for the UGA chapter of SSSCR to have the opportunity to honor the life of Christopher Reeve, a superman in Hollywood and in real life, who embodied the ‘Nothing is Impossible’ spirit that inspires and gives hope to researchers and patients around the world,” said UGA-SSSCR President Kurinji Pandiyan, a senior majoring in genetics and cellular biology.

The Student Society for Stem Cell Research is an international organization dedicated to advancing scientific research for cures. The SSSCR network spans over 100 institutions, 35 states and 10 countries. SSSCR is a special project of the Genetics Policy Institute and a member of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research.

For more information or to become involved in stem cell advocacy, see the Student Society for Stem Cell Research at www.ssscr.org or contact Kurinji Pandiyan at kurinji@uga.edu or 706/202-2234.

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