The only thing you can count on is change! I’ve really been blessed to work with the Dysautonomia Foundation on a very niche and meaningful web comic for the past 7 years, but now the foundation is going in a new direction. In 2012, I met David Brenner and his son Michael at a small comic con in Jersey (Toys on the Hudson in the fall). David (then director of the foundation) had been thinking of a FD comic for awhile since his son loved comics. He loved how my Misfortune Cookie mini comics featured unfortunate subjects in a lighthearted manner, and knew I was the right fit to make his ideas a reality.
The very first No Tears: Life With FD comic! Created in January 2013
Backing up a bit, FD stands for Familial Dysautonomia, a rare Jewish genetic neurological disorder that effects the sensory and autonomic nervous systems. For example people with FD may have trouble swallowing so they need a feeding tube, as in the comic above. I’ve also done a few comics featuring the BiPap machine, because sometimes people with FD have trouble breathing while sleeping. The comic’s title has a double meaning - one of the symptoms of FD is the absence of overflow tears / corneal drying. The title also encourages FD patients and their families to have hope through their daily struggles. Topics in the comic series range from dealing with specific FD situations, like Crisis, to social scenarios of persons with disabilities, and more. The comic has always had a light-hearted and touching theme focusing on the closeness of families.
In the beginning, David wrote the scripts and I hand drew (and even hand-lettered) the comic, coloring it on the computer. It would be posted each week on the foundation’s Facebook Page.
In 2016, sadly David Brenner passed away from cancer and was dearly missed by all. I wondered if the comic would continue, since it had personal ties to David himself. But the interim director, Paul Schack, was happy to continue the comic. It became more of a collaborative endeavor, as I suggested more script ideas and eventually wrote the scripts all by myself, with some edits by Paul. This is the first comic script that was all my own. I also switched to creating the whole comic digitally using my wacom tablet, and turning my handwriting into a font for digital lettering.
Previously the comic had different characters for each strip, with a few recurring characters like a family with a newborn baby with FD. But when I wrote the script, (and also thinking of fresh subjects for the strip) I had lots of creative freedom to explore subjects like special needs dating with recurring characters Adam and Ariel. And I also loved featuring FD Man and FD Girl (top comic) for positive messages! David originally came up with the idea for FD Man, but FD Girl was one of my additions to the comic, and they made a great team!
In late 2018, the Dysautonomia Foundation hired a permanent new director, Lanie Etkind. Again, I wondered if the comic would continue. In 2019, Lanie and others at the foundation suggested focusing on real people who had FD for the comic, like a spotlight. Thus, “FD Heroes IRL” was born! People with FD who were interested in being featured reached out to me and I asked them some questions. I then created a script from their responses (this is much like how I work with people to create custom comics). The FD community loved the new comic too! Andrew S’s comic, above, was personally very inspiring to me because he didn’t let FD stop him from going on an awesome road trip!
And well, since the community is small (it’s a rare disease affecting only 200 people on Earth), the comic has seemed to run its course. I’m so happy to have been involved with the FD community and have contributed to making their days a bit brighter through the comic. Really, it’s amazing the comic has ran for 7 years! I’ve learned so much about FD and always tell new people I meet about the disease and the comic when they ask about what I do as an artist. Spreading awareness!
Comic in memory of Scott Fass, who passed away from FD.
I found the comic work I’ve done for the FD Foundation to be incredibly rewarding and I feel like the comic touched people’s lives, even if in a small way. I like working with non-profits because of the meaningful impact. For a few years I also did a comic for the RLS Foundation called “Night Walkers.” When one door closes, another one opens. I’m definitely open to continuing my comics journey with other non-profits! Please forward this blog post or tag someone on social media who you think would be interested in working with me to create comics that have a positive impact on people who may be going through struggles of any kind.
