At the large fair hosted by Purdue University, our Purdue Student Chapter of NORD (National Organization for Rare Disorders) had the opportunity to showcase our chapter to the many students who visited. The event took place on Saturday, August 17th, from 12:00 to 3:00 pm. Many students approached us with curiosity, eager to learn about our plans. As always, we enthusiastically shared our short and long-term goals, including but not limited to: educating people about various rare disorders, being a voice for those affected by them, offering guidance and advocacy to those who are suffering, etc.

It was particularly moving when some visitors approached us and said, “I am also a zebra.” For those who may not know, the zebra is the official symbol for rare disease patients. This stems from the idea that in medical school, students are often taught to think of horses, not zebras, when hearing hoofbeats—meaning they should look for the most common explanation. However, for rare disease patients, those hoofbeats are zebras, representing their unique and uncommon conditions.

Thank you, Behnaz Akbari (the President of this chapter), for all your hard work, and Fatemeh Dadashipour, for your support as the VP of Marketing.

As the Vice President of this chapter, I would like to invite you to help us be the voice of those who are suffering from rare disorders.

Together, we are stronger.