BUSNA Announces Grant-Funded Fall Events
Birdshot Uveitis Society of North America is pleased to announce that it has received funding from two ophthalmology-focused pharmaceutical companies. The grants from ANI Pharmaceuticals and Genentech (a member of the Roche Group) will support BUSNA in its quest to offer support and educational opportunities to birdshot uveitis patients.
The grants will fund several BUSNA events over the next twelve months, including a webinar series, several Gathering Zoom meetups, and WALKTOBER 2025.
The goal of the webinar series, Thriving with Birdshot, is to inspire our community members to incorporate various healing pathways, from meditation and breathing to the arts, into their day-to-day lives. Each webinar will start with a short presentation by a guest presenter who will inform attendees of the benefits of one or more wellness practices. That expert will then lead workshops that engage attendees in a particular activity.
The first webinar is titled Thriving with Birdshot: Tools for Mind, Body & Spirit and will be presented online by Dr. Heather Evans, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Lynae Martinez, a somatic practitioner. It will take place on Saturday, September 20, 2025, from 1-3 pm ET. The webinar will offer attendees practical tools moving from surviving to thriving with birdshot.
The second webinar is Thriving with Birdshot: Art as a Tool for Wellness and will be presented by Christina Wright, a trained Social Emotional Arts Facilitator. It will take place online on Monday, November 9, 2025, 1-3 pm ET. We each have an Inner artist longing to come out and create. Did you know that the arts can help us manage our chronic illness? Ms. Wright will lead additional arts workshops in January 2026.
BUSNA hopes that fellow birdies throughout the United States and Canada, as well as in the UK, will be able to join us for these fun and enlightening presentations.
ANI and Genentech are sponsoring other exciting events as well!
The Gathering, a Zoom meetup, will take place Sunday, September 21st, 4:30-5:30 pm ET. Birdshot patients are invited to meet each other in an online setting and learn about birdshot by listening to each other and sharing our own journeys. This may be a rare disease, but we are not alone.
BUSNA’s 4th annual WALKTOBER is set to begin October 1st. This year’s event will be better than ever! During the entire month of October, challenge yourself to become more active, whether you are riding a bicycle, hiking, swimming or running on a treadmill.
Please visit the Events page of the BUSNA website to learn more about these happenings. Some registration links are already in place. Others will be linked a few weeks prior to the event. Be sure and join us for what promises to be our best year ever!