iLOOMination Newsletter

What an unforgettable day at the 5th Annual Mental Health Walk in the City of Baldwin Park! Looms for Lupus was honored to co-host this inspiring event alongside the Oath to Country Foundation, Baldwin Park Unified School District, and California Mental Health Connection.

We proudly shared mental health and lupus awareness resources, connected with our community, and spread joy through giveaways mindful bubble breathing, stress balls, temporary tattoos, candy, and more because mental wellness matters.

The event was filled with live music, delicious food, and an atmosphere of positivity and unity. Thank you to everyone who walked, supported, and helped make this celebration of mental health such a meaningful success.

Together, we walk for awareness. We walk for hope. 

 Looms for Lupus Collaborates with Global Healthy Living Foundation for creation of the Lupus Help Center

Juana and Estela Mata of Looms for Lupus proudly collaborated with the Global Healthy Living Foundation and its CreakyJoints community to help shape the Lupus Help Center a bilingual, patient-centered resource hub designed to empower people living with lupus through education, storytelling, and clinical trial awareness.

As two of the featured patient voices, Juana and Estela not only participated in the Clinical Trials Talks podcast series, but also contributed their lived experience and advocacy expertise to the development of the site itself. Their insights helped ensure the platform reflects the real needs, questions, and cultural perspectives of the lupus community especially those often left out of research conversations.

This collaboration is a testament to the power of patient leadership and the belief that when patients help build the resources, the result is more inclusive, more impactful, and more hopeful.

Explore the project at the link below. 

 On October 4, 2024 California Life Sciences and Looms For Lupus hosted a Health Equity Community event in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.  Hosting a diverse group of stakeholders, including legislators, community members, mental health providers, medical professionals, researchers, pharmaceutical representatives, DEIA experts, interpreters, and patients, to discuss barriers and solutions to equitable healthcare access for all. Featuring: Senator Susan Rubio, Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur Expert Panelists: Luis Garcia, PsyD; Yelba Castellon-Lopez, MD, MS; Catherine Velazquez; Marina Sorace-Ferreyro, JD, CTP, CMI-Spanish; Yolanda Padilla, MPH; Juana Mata This collaborative effort aimed to find actionable solutions to improve healthcare access for everyone.

In this episode, we are joined by Estela Mata, President and CEO of Looms for Lupus, a non-profit dedicated to raising awareness and providing support for those living with lupus, and other chronic conditions. Estela shares her personal and family journey with lupus and the profound impact of advocacy. She highlights the importance of community, the need for increased awareness, and the power of sharing personal stories, especially within the Hispanic community. Estela’s message of hope and resilience is a reminder of the strength found in community and the critical role of advocacy in chronic illness management.

Living Well With Lupus: A Toolkit for Women 

The Toolkit, Living Well With Lupus: A Toolkit for Women was created to support women and their families in the lupus diagnosis and care journey. 

Click on the link to access toolkit.

 Building a Close-Knit Community: A  Womans Journey with Lupus

The Society for Women’s Health Research spoke with Juana Mata, a patient advocate and co-founder of Looms for Lupus and Mata Advocacy and Support, about her journey with lupus. The following blog post captures takeaways from the conversation.   

https://swhr.org/building-a-close-knit-community-one-womans-journey-with-lupus/

Juana's Story-Lupus and Clinical Trials- Let's Take Charge Campaign

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (HHS OMH) has joined forces with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office of Minority Health and Health Equity (FDA OMHHE) to launch the Let’s Take Charge! Campaign, an initiative to make lupus research more inclusive and diverse.

https://youtu.be/_eYM1s_4Bdo

American College of Rheumatology Abstract by Juana Mata and Estela Mata

1. https://acrabstracts.org/abstract/knitting-a-community-of-hope-supporting-empowering-and-educating-those-living-with-lupus-and-overlapping-conditions-and-their-loved-ones-via-in-person-and-virtual-support-groups-t/

Hard Advocacy Work Pays Off for Lupus!

https://www.lupusresearch.org/hard-advocacy-work-pays-off-lupus/

World Lupus Day with Juana Mata

May 10, 2018

http://lupusla.org/world-lupus-day-with-juana-mata/

2018 Los Angeles Walk with us to Cure Lupus Twilight Stroll-

http://support.lupusresearch.org/site/TR/WalkwithUs/Walk2013Redesign?team_id=98602&pg=team&fr_id=4141