Vanessa Li
Vanessa Yeuk Lin Li (1981-2015) was notable for her work in founding the crowdfunding campaign for the Microbe Discovery Project.
Life[edit | edit source]
Vanessa lived in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Illness[edit | edit source]
Vanessa first became ill with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) during a family ski trip in the Italian Alps as a college student where she caught a flu and never recovered. "She spent the next 15 years wracked by piercing migraines, chronic pain, breathing issues, and occasional paralysis."[1]
Microbe Discovery Project[edit | edit source]
Vanessa was a founder of the Microbe Discovery Project crowdfunding campaign.
Death[edit | edit source]
In a February 16, 2015 Facebook Post post by Vanessa's family, the ME/CFS community learned that Vanessa took her own life by taking an overdose of sleeping pills and donated her body to medical research for ME/CFS.[2]
Legacy[edit | edit source]
Vanessa's youngest brother, Julian Li, produced a video montage of Vanessa's life story.[3]
Dr. Mady Hornig and Dr. Ian Lipkin said of Vanessa's passing, "There are no words to express how [we] feel on learning of the tragic loss of Vanessa Li. Vanessa was the driving force behind the crowd funding campaign for the Microbe Discovery Project."[4]
Her co-founders at the Microbe Discovery Project crowdfunding campaign:
"On February the 4th 2015 our dear friend and colleague Vanessa Li passed away. There has been a cascade of condolences and messages as this community processes the loss of a person who touched so many people. Vanessa founded this crowdfunding project and this team has worked closely and intensely for over a year. Through all the ups and downs of working in a team trying to achieve something we care about we have got to know each other quite well. We are still in shock over this loss and we miss her."[5]
Online presence[edit | edit source]
Learn more[edit | edit source]
- Oct 8, 2015, The Tragic Neglect of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome[1]
See also[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Khazan, Olga (October 8, 2015). "The Tragic Neglect of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome". The Atlantic. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Li Family (February 16, 2015). "In memory of Vanessa Yeuk Lin Li". Facebook. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Li, Julian (March 12, 2015). "Vanessa Memorial Video Montage (Memorial Service)". YouTube. Virtual Vigil for Vanessa Li.
- ↑ Lipkin, Ian; Hornig, Mady (February 8, 2015). "Tribute to crowdfund founder Vanessa Li from Drs Lipkin & Hornig". The Microbe Discovery Project. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ↑ The Microbe Discovery Project crowdfund team (February 9, 2015). "Our tribute to Vanessa Li, founder of the crowdfund". The Microbe Discovery Project. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
