Project Scleroderma Founder Recalls Fundraising Record Being Broken

The person who helped Havertown’s Christy McCaffrey reach her goal of getting $30,000, , for her Project Scleroderma was certainly not a local person.

Or even from America.

McCaffrey was in a by 11:59 p.m., Monday May 28, so she can continue Project Scleroderma, a video documentary to help people become aware of scleroderma, an autoimmune disorder that took her mother’s life in 2009. (Editor's note: Some of the images in the video can be considered graphic.)

And with a little help from a scleroderma patient in Spain, at 9 p.m. this past Saturday the fundraising goal was met.

“The donation that put us over our goal was from a Scleroderma patient in Madrid, Spain who raised funds among her friends and family and just days earlier had already contributed $3,500. She contributed close to another $800 on Saturday night to put us over the mark. I am so glad she was the one to do it, she has worked so hard throughout this campaign to spread the word and raise funds that it was appropriate she be the one to make that contribution,” McCaffrey, a hair stylist at  in Newtown Square, recalled to Patch on Tuesday.

Project Scleroderma raised $32,320—that's $2,320 more than its original goal of $30,000. Had the project finished under $30,000, all of the money would go back to the donors.

During the weekend McCaffrey was near her computer and cell phone, watching the fundraising number as it slowly grew and receiving text messages and phone calls from family and friends who were also watching the goal.

But it was at that moment when the patient from Spain made the donation that everything exploded for the 27-year-old Havertown resident.

“I am pretty sure I screamed at the top of my lungs, started crying and tackled my husband. It definitely was a surreal and exciting moment. Just a week ago we were under $15,000. I believed this entire time that this was possible to achieve, but at times it was certainly nerve racking,” she exclaimed.

McCaffrey credits her husband for being her biggest supporter, since he has witnessed first hand how difficult and trying it has been at times for her. Her mother Sandy Selfridge was 58 when she was diagnosed with scleroderma in April of 2009. After suffering from the disease, she passed away only a few months later in September of 2009, McCaffrey explained.

The $32,320 raised will go towards the continue production of the documentary video “Beneath The Surface.” The money will cover travel expenses, as the video is an international documentary of scleroderma patients.

But the money will also be used for equipment and rental fees, McCaffrey stated.

“We will continue to raise funds, however, as we still need to cover additional costs for shooting, editing, color correction and motion graphics. But this was a huge kick off to our project and we are so incredibly grateful for the support,” discussed McCaffrey.

Checks can be made out to "Project Scleroderma" and mailed to:

New Pace Productions
1615 E. Darby Rd.
Suite 202
Havertown, Pa. 19083