Cookies4Cures: Dana Perella

True Stories of Good People

When 5-year-old Dana Perella was at a speech therapy session she met another young girl named Mila, and they became fast friends. Over the years, Dana’s speech challenges went away while Mila’s got worse. Other health issues started coming up for Mila as well, and she eventually received a diagnosis of Batten disease, a neurological disorder that worsens over time. When Dana heard that Mila’s family needed to quickly raise funds for a potentially life-saving clinical trial, Dana wanted to help, so she started baking cookies and selling them around her neighborhood. What started out as a small local project has grown into a nonprofit organization that aims to find a cure for all rare childhood diseases.