March of Dimes Honors John F. Crowley

On Friday November 14, 2014, the March of Dimes will honor John F. Crowley, Chairman and CEO of Amicus Therapeutics, Inc., at its Celebration of New Beginnings breakfast by presenting him with the “FDR Visionary Award” for outstanding leadership and support of the mission of the March of Dimes - to prevent premature birth, birth defects and infant mortality. The event will be held at the Pines Manor in Edison, New Jersey beginning at 8:00 am.

The Celebration of New Beginnings event was founded by March of Dimes and Pfizer to increase public awareness of the progress, promise of cutting-edge research, and public health programs in the areas of maternal and infant health in New Jersey.

John F. Crowley is the Chairman and CEO of Amicus Therapeutics, Inc.  John's involvement with biotechnology stems from the 1998 diagnosis of two of his children with Pompe disease-a severe and often fatal neuromuscular disorder. In his drive to find a cure for them, he left his position at Bristol-Myers Squibb and became an entrepreneur as the co-founder, president and CEO of Novazyme Pharmaceuticals, a biotech start-up conducting research on a new experimental treatment for Pompe disease (which he credits as ultimately saving his children's lives.) In 2001, Novazyme merged into Genzyme Corporation and John continued to play a lead role in the development of a drug for Pompe disease as Senior Vice President, Genzyme Therapeutics.

John and his family have been profiled on the front page of The Wall Street Journal and are the subjects of a book by Pulitzer prize-winning journalist Geeta Anand, "The Cure: How a Father Raised $100 Million-And Bucked the Medical Establishment-In a Quest to Save His Children." The major motion picture, Extraordinary Measures, starring Brendan Fraser and Harrison Ford, is inspired by the Crowley family journey.  John is the author of a personal memoir:  Chasing Miracles: The Crowley Family Journey of Strength, Hope and Joy.

John is also a commissioned officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, assigned to the United States Special Operations Command and is a veteran of the global war on terrorism, with service in Afghanistan. He graduated with a B.S. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, and earned a J.D. from the University of Notre Dame Law School and an M.B.A. from Harvard.  John is a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute. John serves as the National Chairman-elect of the Board of Directors of the Make A Wish Foundation of America.

“We are honored to be able to present John Crowley with the FDR Visionary Award for his commitment to working together for stronger, healthier babies,” said Gina Radice, Executive Director, March of Dimes, North Jersey Division. “John’s presence coupled with his generosity and heartfelt support will help increase awareness of our mission and bring much success to this event. We are thankful to John for accepting this role as our 2014 Honoree.”

For more information on this event and to purchase tickets contact Carol Roberts at croberts@marchofdimes.com or (973) 296-8808.