District Director Candidate Statement

My name is Michael Mallinson, and I would like to be the next District Director for LPA’s District 12. 


As a family, we owe so much to the LPA. Not only have we received immeasurable support for my daughter Caitlin, both medical and social, but we have gained an amazing family that we might never have known. Some of our closest friends, including Caitlin’s godparents, have been made directly thanks to the LPA. Now, I would like to give some of myself back.


Our involvement with the LPA began shortly after my daughter was diagnosed with achondroplasia at 3 months of age. After attending a number of events over the first year or two of her life, Cherylle and I became the parent coordinators for the Los Angeles chapter. It was wonderful to be able to contribute! Meeting new parents and helping them understand that everything is perfectly okay is really an amazing feeling. Another big pleasure was the opportunity to plan events, both for parents and chapter-wide, leading up to acting as chairs for the 2010 Spring Regional Conference in our hometown of Valencia, CA, and then as AV Coordinators for the 2011 National Conference in Anaheim. What an experience!


If you choose me as the next District Director, I would like to focus the next three years on three main things; 1) continuing to increase local chapter enrollment and participation; 2) starting an outreach program to pediatricians and GP doctors throughout the district to increase dwarfism awareness and referrals to the LPA and our associated medical professionals who can provide the support new parents need; and 3) improving the district’s role in coordinating the regional conferences, helping take some of the burden of fundraising and site selection off of the shoulders of the chapters.


I’ve heard so many stories from the people I’ve met over the last four years, both LP member and AH parent, about how the LPA has changed their lives for the better. With your help, I would like to contribute to an organization that will be there, the same way, for our children and their friends, when they are ready to take the lead.