VITFriends Vitiligo Support Group

05/16/2026

05/16/2026

Our 2026 Summit was simply outstanding, thanks to our sponsor Incyte

Make plans now, as we begin to think ahead at 2028, you will want to be with us.

Education is KEY - KNOWLEDGE is power!

Our goal is to supply you with the TOOLS to be able to stand up for, share knowledge and to SPEAK-UP for your cause - Vitiligo.

Special THANKS to our M C. Rev Dr Wallace R III Henry...To our State Host Millicent Meadows To our Event Assistant Patricia Rossy....To our amazing Event Planner Mary-dith Tuitt... To ALL of our Speakers and to all those who attended in-house and via Zoom...Thank YOU!

Here's just a sample:

05/12/2026

Today, we want to shine the SPOTLIGHT on one of our amazing Purple Patch Teen and Young Adult Peer Leaders.

Please meet Author and Leader - Priyanka Francis. She is a college Student who, with her mom Vimala Francis, came to us five years, when Priyanka was a high school freshman.

Today we want to encourage that you or your child with Vitiligo would get a copy of her book.

We were grateful to receive a promise from this family, that the first $1,000 would be donated to our Teen Scholarship and it was. The scholarship we subsequently named "the Priyanka Francis Scholarship Fund." This goes to ACTIVE students attending and contributing to our National Vitiligo PPT group meetings. Here Priyanka;s Book:

Priyanka Francis, a teenager from California, describes her experiences living with vitiligo, an autoimmune disease that causes white patches of depigmented skin to appear. She delves into the psychological and physical effects vitiligo has had on her life, creating an informative, heart-warming ...

05/09/2026

Please join us as we extend our sincere CONGRATULATIONS to our amazing Lead Medical Student Intern.

Kristin Tissera NOW our own Doctor Kristin, has completed the journey and she graduated yesterday.

Dr Kristin Tissera has been a support and an inspiration to VITFriends, willing to lend a hand in every area of our work. Watching her READ to the children at the YMCA, hosting her Medical PODCAST, asking nothing of us, but ALWAYS giving of herself, she is truly a CHAMPION for our cause and we HONOR her.

7years ago, when she sought us out, in her interview she shared about why a heart for Vitiligo. It was when you talked about her grandmother having Vitiligo, I was moved.

Today, I know grandma and her dad, as they R.I.P. they are smiling as their beautiful daughter crosses the finish line. Your mom and our entire community celebrates YOU -today and always- for your genuine heart of Gold!

We are so PROUD of you and wish for you a bright future as you move into this new chapter of your life. We would be so honored to have you as VITFriends New Medical Advisor if you would agree. We bless you!

05/08/2026

As we celebrate this our 16th year of hosting our PODCAST, we are grateful to the many guest who've shared their journey with us.

We want to THANK our former co-host Mark Braxton for the wonderful shows and laughter he's brought to us.

Thank you to our current co-host and Lead Medical Student Intern, Kristin Tissera as she brings us views from the medical side of Vitiligo.

We especially THANK our Sponsor since 2022, MyVitiligoTeam and our own Vitiligo brother Eric Peacock President of MVT.

As we look ahead to the next 16years, we want to continue to be relevant in this community and look forward to bringing more great stories.

Also, to the many who helped us through the COVID Pandemic by sharing their journey with us, here's their photos and we honor them. https://www.vitfriends.org/vitfriendspodcasts

Finally, most of these show can STILL be found here on iHeart radio:
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-vitfriends-vitiligo-suppor-284916844

A Vitiligo Support, Education and Awareness Network.

05/07/2026

Welcome to VITFriends Podcast!

We are excited to report that 2026 marks our 16th year of doing our Podcast, which is sponsored by MyVitiligoTeam!

Here is a REVIEW of Vitiligo for the end of 2025 by a giant in our community Vitiligo Research Foundation CEO Yan Valle.

Thanks to the amazing work of Vitiligo Research Foundation and CEO Yan Valle, a gaint in the Vitiligo Community, we want to SHARE their end of 2025 podcast. Thi

05/04/2026

From 2017, VITFriends started focusing on Educating our children with Vitiligo.

We felt that it was important to Educate and bringing Awareness to parent after their child is diagnosed.

This beautiful memory reminds us of when little Aliya Sawyer came to us at age 6, as our first baby-girl with Vitiligo. ❤️

All of the children in this colleague are young adults today!

Help Educate The World About Vitiligo. The bigger the World Vitiligo Day celebration, the more attention the event will get from the media, resulting in more awareness for the vitiligo community. And the more awareness we build, the more people we educate about vitiligo. And hopefully that means that somewhere, one less person will be stared at, judged or bullied because of our efforts.

05/02/2026

May is Mental Health Awareness Month!

If you are in need of support, PLEASE Call the 988LifeLine.org -support line: Call - 988 day or night.

If your concern is VITILIGO related and you have QUESTIONS, please Call: 844-374-3639

05/02/2026

TRUE COLORS:
With the assistance of AI technology, I was able to share my WORDS and my VOICE to create this master piece a sample of what's to come.

For over a decade, I've been sharing the Vitiligo journey on social Media with our community and with the world, and will continue to do so.

Now, this is what was produced for me by AI, please ENJOY and also SHARE your comments.

Listen and make your own on Suno.

04/29/2026

RARE Disease -vs- Common Disease

How many people really know the difference?

VITFriends has ALWAYS focused on ADVOCACY but going forward this will be our MAIN focus.

What is a RARE Disease? https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/nih-turning-discovery-into-health/promise-precision-medicine/rare-diseases

According to the NIH magazine, vitiligo is a chronic autoimmune condition affecting roughly 0.5–2% of the global population It is NOT considered a RARE disease.

Knowledge is Power! Today was another one of those days of KNOWLEDGE. It was an honor to be invited to attend the April session of our Rare Diseases From Diagnosis to Therapy Series, hosted by the NORD Center of Excellence for Rare Disorders hosted by Boston Children’s Hospital.

This month’s session focused on Alagille syndrome (ALGS), a rare genetic disorder that primarily affects the liver, heart, and other organ systems, requiring coordinated, multidisciplinary care across the lifespan.

Advocacy is everyday - Get INVOLVED in Your Cause - VITILIGO, Your VOICE Matters!

[Enter summary here]