Vasculitis International is pleased to extend its warmest congratulations to the Vasculitis Foundation (VF) on the occasion of its 40th anniversary.

On behalf of the vasculitis patient advocacy groups we represent across fourteen European countries, we celebrate this milestone and the extraordinary legacy it represents.

Founded in 1986 by Marilyn Sampson, RN — herself a GPA patient — as the Wegener’s Granulomatosis Support Group, the Vasculitis Foundation has grown over four decades into the world’s leading patient advocacy organization in the field of vasculitis.

From a single support group in Kansas City, it has become a global force: funding over 80 research studies, developing clinical care guidelines in partnership with the American College of Rheumatology, supporting thousands of patients and families, and building a transatlantic network of researchers, clinicians, and advocates.

Much of that growth has taken place under the leadership of Joyce Kullman, who joined the organization as a volunteer in 1995 and has served as Executive Director since 2002. Her tenure has been defined by the combination of personal commitment and organizational vision that has come to characterize the Foundation as a whole.

Peter Verhoeven, Chair of Vasculitis International, has addressed a letter of congratulation to the Vasculitis Foundation. In it, he writes:

“When my wife was diagnosed with GPA in 2002, the Vasculitis Foundation was one of the very few sources of reliable, accessible information available to us. In those early, disorienting months, your website, your materials, and the sense of community the Foundation offered were lifelines — and that is not a word I use lightly.”

Vasculitis International looks forward to many more years of transatlantic collaboration, shared advocacy, and joint progress toward better diagnosis, better treatment, and better quality of life for all people living with vasculitis.