Toole established the permanently endowed Shields Family Patient Care Fund to help improve the quality of life of those who are suffering from Huntington's disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that slowly impairs one's ability to think clearly, maintain control over emotions and move in a coordinated manner. Toole named the Shields Fund for her maternal family; her grandmother, uncle and cousin, all with the last name of Shields, died of Huntington's disease. Toole's friends have also contributed to the fund.

The Shields Fund will help the center, a unit of UI Hospitals and Clinics, offer patients in need of medical services such as medication trials, genetic testing and therapeutic treatments; provide specialized tools such as eating utensils, computer equipment and walkers; and purchase supplies for support groups.

"I want to help people with Huntington's disease preserve their dignity," Toole said. "The Shields Fund will give patients and their families much-needed assistance as they struggle with this terrible illness. I'm very happy to make this gift, and I hope others will join me in supporting Huntington's disease patients."

Henry Paulson, MD, PhD, co-director of UI Hospitals and Clinics Huntington's Disease Center of Excellence, said Toole's generosity offers hope for families.

"As an inherited condition affecting, on average, half of all the people in a family that carries the gene, Huntington's disease can devastate the social and financial well-being of affected families," said Paulson, a professor in the Department of Neurology in the UI Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine. "Midge Toole's gift will allow our center to provide state-of-the-art care for patients, regardless of their ability to pay for a test, medication or support services. It is wonderful that she directed it to the immediate needs of the patients and families."

The Huntington's Disease Center of Excellence is a multidisciplinary center at UI Hospitals and Clinics that provides medical, psychological, social, genetic and educational services to the Huntington's disease community. Many services and opportunities are offered for individuals affected by, or at risk of, Huntington's disease and for those who care for them.

Those wishing to contribute to the Shields Fund may contact Tori Erickson, the UI Foundation's associate director of development for UI Hospitals and Clinics, at 800-648-6973 or tori-erickson@uiowa.edu.

Midge Toole

For more information:

UI Neurosciences

Huntington's Disease Center of Excellence

Henry Paulson, MD, PhD

Department of Neurology

Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine

UI Foundation