Despite much progress in the last 20 to 30 years, there remains a substantial lack of awareness and understanding of Tourette Syndrome (TS).

The national Tourette Syndrome Association (TSA) and its Greater Missouri Chapter are working diligently to help close this knowledge gap. One such effort involves annual visits with members of Congress. During these visits, individuals with TS and their families can share their stories with the men and women who write our nation’s laws and establish funding for initiatives like the Tourette Syndrome Public Health, Education, and Research Program.

Last summer, five TS families, including three young men with TS, visited with Congressman Todd Akin at his District office in Ballwin, Mo. This spring, the Greater Missouri TSA is actively working to schedule local visits with Sens. Claire McCaskill and Kit Bond, as well as Reps. William Lacy Clay, Russ Carnahan, and their counterparts in the St. Louis Metro East area, Reps. Jerry Costello and John Shimkus.

If you are a constituent of any of these members of Congress, have a TS story to share, and would like to participate in the visits we are attempting to schedule, please contact Pete Abel — the government relations liaison for the TSA’s Greater Missouri Chapter — at 314-315-9346 or abel.reply@gmail.com.