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RIP Faith.
Faith W. Rice, founder and past executive director of NJ Center for Tourette Syndrome and Associated Disorders (NJCTS), passed away on Monday, March 22, 2021 due to the horrendous effects of ALS.
Faith became a Tourette Syndrome advocate when her son Kim began exhibiting signs of the disorder as a child. It took 10 years to get a diagnosis but even with that information she found that there were no resources for her son – few knowledgeable doctors, no family support and no network. Leaving her full time job at IBM, she set out to bring about change for her son, and for others facing a TS diagnosis.
She created a Youth Advocate program so children and teens with TS could learn how to advocate for themselves and others. In partnership with Rutgers, she created the NJCTS Tourette Syndrome Clinic and, perhaps her greatest legacy, the NJCTS Cell & DNA Sharing Repository which has propelled TS research forward in remarkable ways.
Faith’s spirit lives on and her love and work advocating for the TS community will always be remembered. Faith dedicated her life to ensuring those living with TS and the associated disorders could live full productive lives. Whether it was through educating others, investing in research, or offering words of hope to a family, she was there. Faith was committed to changing minds and changing lives.
Faith is survived by her husband Michael and her son Kim.
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Buddy Owens
Faith and I were good friends in High School but we never dated. We did get together in Califon, NJ at my sisters house and it was fun recalling good times at WHS. We spoke in October of 2019 and discussed the four of us getting together for a round of golf and dinner on Maryland's Eastern Shore but that never happened.. The news of her passing was a shock to me.. Faith was such a friendly person and found good in everyone she met. Big Band Jazz was our common interest and a group of us would visit Birdland when ever Maynard Fergusen was in town. Rest in peace my dear friend. My heartfelt prayers are with your husband and son as they go though this difficult time.
Robert Bogdanowitz
Rest in peace Faith.
Dorothy Lepinsky (Lane)
Sincere Condolences to Faith's husband, son, family members and friends. Faith was a very down to earth beautiful girl! She was a wonderful cheerleader! I will always remember her kindness to me! Rest in peace. Dorothy Lepinsky Lane
Joan Ditri (Flanagan)
Faith and I shared many classes together. May she rest in peace. Condolences to her family.
Virginia Kollar (Lanzilotti)
Faith and I have been close friends since high school. We got our first jobs together in NYC right after graduation. She was remarkable and what she did for Tourett's Syndrome patients in New Jersey, the Nation and even the World was nothing less than amazing. Because of her there is a program at Rutgers where graduate students teach elementary and high school teachers how to deal with TS students, an International database of TS DNA and researchers who have discovered genes causing TS. The work is not finished but there has been headway. I will miss her friendship and will be praying for her family.