Crohn’s disease has hit close to our home. Members of our family have been affected by Crohn’s disease. Each time we received another diagnosis, it felt like getting knocked down by a wave of uncertainty and fear. It was hard to get information about treatments, and even harder to reconcile why it was happening to them and how it would change our family’s lives. They endured endless doctor visits, drug protocols, hospitalizations, and drastic lifestyle changes. Fortunately, both daughters were able to access excellent medical care, allowing them to live full lives and raise beautiful families. We established the Sherman Prize to recognize the accomplishments of leaders in the field in the hope that it will create a ripple effect, spreading awareness, innovation, and inspiration to others, so that other families won’t have to contend with the disease as ours has.

Sherman Prize recipients are outstanding individuals who consider the whole patient experience — not just the serious symptoms, but also the psychological and practical components of IBD. Their work is innovative and impactful, and goes well beyond the norm, generating positive benefits on behalf of patients, their families and caregivers, and the future trajectory of the field. They are out-of-the-box thinkers who energize others to enter the fight to overcome Crohn’s and colitis. Our hope is that future recipients continue that tradition of excellence, including all patients in their work, especially those who can’t afford or access quality care.

We also hope this endeavor inspires and engages our children, grandchildren, and generations to come, just as much as it inspires the health care providers, researchers, educators and advocates who are serving those living with Crohn’s and colitis. This is a family effort: family-funded and family-created, and that makes this a heartfelt endeavor.

After years of hard work, it is a wonderful privilege to give back, and it’s particularly exciting to do so in a creative, personally meaningful way. The Sherman Prize is a legacy we are building together, and one we hope will have positive, lasting impacts on the lives of many.

Sincerely,
Bruce and Cynthia