Support Network Update
Ohio group honors leader Susan Midcap

By Beth Huneycutt

Each year, after presenting the CSN ACTION Awards, we like to tell you something about a recipient. This year, we're letting the members of the Akron-Canton CFIDS/FMS Self-Help Group do it for us.
 
These are the comments and inspiring words that led the CFIDS Support Network Advisory Committee to make the 1998 CSN ACTION Champion Award to Susan Midcap. ACTION Champion Awards are presented to individuals who have offered outstanding support on behalf of persons with CFIDS. These sentiments say a lot about why Susan's group members consider her a champion.

 "Susan Midcap and this support group have been extremely beneficial to me and many others. Although she isn't well herself, Susan has managed to provide copies of information through mailings and at meetings and has supplied a library for us to use. It helps immensely to be able to have updated information available. I have had CFIDS for at least the past 12 years. For the last seven, with Susan's and this group's support, I have been able to get through many lows. Without their help, it would be unbearable."

 "With the support of our leader, Susan Midcap, we are provided with a supportive, caring and educational atmosphere. Just knowing there are other people suffering from similar problems is a big help."

 "I first contacted Susan Midcap, leader of the Akron-Canton CFS/FM Self-Help Group, in 1994 when I was seeking an attorney for my Social Security disability claim. She put me in touch with another member of the group who was able to help me.

 "Since then, I have only been to one meeting (because of extreme fatigue), yet Susan and those who help her have continued to send me mailings of CFS information, the group's activities and a birthday card each year.

 "Despite her own symptoms, her job as a special education teacher and her responsibilities to her family, Susan still uses some of her time and limited energy to accomplish the group's goals and to support persons with CFS."

 "I moved to Akron, Ohio, in September of 1992. I called and found a local phone number for the nearest CFIDS support group. I was a little nervous about going to a meeting by myself the first time, but Susan Midcap soon made me feel right at home. A dedicated and devoted group leader in spite of all her problems related to this illness, she has managed to accumulate a whole library of CFIDS and fibromyalgia information.

 "I've since moved and I miss the group in Akron. I still receive letters and information from Susan. She is one of the most kind, unselfish, generous and compassionate people I have ever met."

 "This group has been so helpful to me. The information is great and the library we have makes so much more available. Susan and the others have been so caring even though they suffer the same."

 "Although she is a wife, mother and teacher and must cope with CFS, Susan always has time to counsel others who are much sicker then she may be. More importantly, she has provided a forum for those who suffer with CFS to share ideas, literature, books and stories about CFS."

 "The Akron-Canton CFS and FM Self-Help Group is an excellent source of support and information. Our leader, Susan Midcap, is dedicated to keeping things going. When I consider the shape I was in two years ago and how much I've learned and grown as a result of being connected with this group, I am truly amazed. I am thankful that I discovered this group. Reaching out to others in pain and those suffering from fatigue has helped me learn about friendship, respect and compassion in a much deeper way."
 
Susan Midcap was awarded the 1998 CSN ACTION Champion Award on Oct. 10 at the CSN reception held in Cambridge, Mass. (see the November/December 1998 issue of the Chronicle for more on the CSN reception and other ACTION award recipients). If you are a support group leader or contact or if you know someone who is, send a self-addressed business-sized envelope stamped with 55¢ postage to: CSN Info, PO Box 220398, Charlotte, NC 28222-0398, to receive a free CSN information packet.

 We thank Susan and all support group leaders, who, while ill themselves, offer support to others who live each day with CFIDS and related disorders. Their generosity and commitment show everyone that they are all champions.

Looking for a group?
If you're interested in locating a support group in your area, send a business-sized self-addressed envelope stamped with 33¢ postage to the address noted above. You'll receive a list of support groups available in your state.

A correction
In the Sept./Oct. 1998 Chronicle, we incorrectly identified Kay H. Benton as leader of the FMS/CFIDS Support Group of Farmville, Va. Kay is simply a member of the group, which is led by a committee of volunteers. We apologize for the error.

Beth Huneycutt left The CFIDS Association of America last month after six years of service to pursue a career in nursing. Kris Hopkins is now Support Network Services Director.