On Wednesday, Aug. 12, The Grove—developed by Caruso Affiliated, which is set to open its Palisades Village project in Fall 2017—kicked off a month-long initiative when 100 percent of the change thrown into The Grove fountain will be donated exclusively to The Charlotte and Gwenyth Gray Foundation to Cure Batten Disease.
Shoppers, friends and family gathered to throw change into the fountain to launch the campaign for Charlotte and Gwenyth Gray, two Palisadian sisters who were diagnosed with the rare and fatal neurodegenerative brain disease this past Spring.
Photo courtesy of The Grove
The variation of Batten disease Charlotte and Gwenyth have is so rare it is estimated that less than 10 children are currently living with the disease. Children with the genetic disease typically live to be only 6-12 years of age.
The foundation was launched in June to raise an estimated $10 million to fund accelerated medical research to identify the most effective treatments, stop the progression of the disease and, potentially, find a cure that could save the sisters and other children like them.
The Gray family of Marquez Knolls, including dad Gordon and mom Kristen, is hoping that raising the funds could lead to a cure for their young daughters.
Using hashtag #curebatten, celebrities, including Palisades homeowner Reese Witherspoon, Palisades Charter High School graduate Will.i.am, Jennifer Lawrence, Jessica Alba, Channing Tatum and Justin Timberlake, have taken to Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to ask their fans and followers to donate since the girls were diagnosed.
Additionally, The Grove will donate one dollar for every photo uploaded to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram showing a guest throwing change into The Grove fountain and tagged with the hashtag #Change4Batten.
Palisadians who want to help the family are encouraged to donate at curebatten.org in addition to #Change4Batten.
—JACQUELINE PRIMO
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