Name: Omega A. Urban
Age: 41
Where do you call home? the Florida Panhandle.
Education (degree(s): I graduated from The University of West Florida in 2009 with a BA in Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, with focuses on Psychology and Criminal Justice. I am planning to take some online classes soon, focusing on writing and proofreading, to better enable me to do freelance work in that area.
Who do you live with? I live with my husband Larry, our eleven-year-old daughter Emmalee, our nine-year-old lab mix Kenzie, and our newest addition, our one-year-old highly energetic Plott Hound Nillie.
What's a typical day for you? I am a stay-at-home mom. I typically sleep in and start my day off slowly, letting my husband take care of the morning necessities. I'm a night owl and often suffer from insomnia, so mornings are not my favorite time of day! By late morning, I am awake and doing various things on my laptop or phone like playing games, watching Twitch, writing, designing documents and charts, listening to podcasts, and/or chatting with friends. When my daughter gets home from school in the afternoon, I help her with homework and spend time with her (if she wants!). My husband cooks dinner in the evening, and we all eat together, usually over an episode of Bob's Burgers - unless I am modding a Twitch stream for my friend that evening. At night, I sometimes play a game with my daughter, read, listen to more podcasts, and/or get back on my laptop.
Meet the Community
You are not alone. The entire FA community, also known as the FAmily, is taking this journey with you. Meet a few of our dynamic people with FA below. New Meet the Community interviews are posted every Monday, so be sure to visit often. Please e-mail
FARA Ambassadors
The FARA Ambassadors are a group of people living with FA who are committed to supporting FARA in the search for a treatment and cure. They represent the community by speaking at events, meeting pharmaceutical partners, giving media interviews, and more.
Meet the FAmily!
Omega A. Urban
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- Category: Meet the Community
Brittany Sommerfield
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- Category: Meet the Community
Name: Brittany Sommerfield
Age: 28
Where do you call home? Manitoba, Canada
Education (degree(s): : It’s at a complicated point. I was (still am) a travel agent. Most recently I worked from home casually but as many others in the industry, the COVID-19 pandemic hit hard. I took a break and I found new focuses. I am a FARA ambassador on the leadership team, I do bookkeeping work on my father’s self-employment, I volunteer with APC (Assiniboine Park Conservancy- mostly at the zoo) and other odd jobs.
What is a current goal you have with your education? I am thinking of focusing more professionally on bookkeeping, hopefully remaining in the travel industry. I will absolutely remain within the ataxia community, of course it personally interests me, I also learn so much and it is very rewarding being with FARA, Ataxia Canada, and other organizations. Working with APC is new but I love it and I don’t plan to leave.
Who do you live with? My parents. They are pretty good roommates.
What's a typical day for you? It tends to be different. Weather is a huge factor. I’ll work-out, I’ll plan video calls or have zoom meetings a couple times a week. GST reports, timesheets, email cleanouts, family time (I have 2 sisters and 3 nephews and we are very close), house chores, seeing some friends, going to the local zoo or park to volunteer; these are just some things that are always in my week. It helps my mental and physical health to be busy (within reason).
Jafar Marizapoor
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- Category: Meet the Community
Name: Jafar Mirzapoor
Age: 25
Where do you call home? I am an Afghan refugee and currently I live in Iran.
Education (degree(s): I am graduated from high school and I study computer by myself
Who do you live with? With my parents and siblings (they are patients too)
Joseph Boon
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- Category: Meet the Community
Name: Joseph Boon
Age: 32
Where do you call home? Palmerston North, Aotearoa New Zealand
Education (degree(s): Bachelor of Arts double major from Victoria University of Wellington. I am considering getting a further teaching qualification, but I haven’t made up my mind.
Who do you live with? I live with my sister.
What's a typical day for you? I spend my days painting, drawing, reading, writing letters, exercising, dog walking, watching good films and TV, and spending time with my young nieces and nephew. I also like to meet friends in cafes. Depending on my level of energy I may do any, or all of these things in a normal day.
Christina Buckalew
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- Category: Meet the Community
Name: Christina Buckalew
Age: 21
Where do you call home? Austin, TX
Education: I’m currently working on my associates degree in Business Management at a community college. Next, I will be going for a Bachelors in Business Management, hopefully at Texas A&M. I aspire to acquire a Masters in Business Management from the Business school in Paris, France; but that is still to be determined.
Who do you live with? I live with my parents, my sister, my uncle, three cats and a dog.
What's a typical day for you? I am always doing something different. I am an avid volunteer, I ride horses, I go to physical therapy twice a week, I tutor my cousin, and I enjoy eating out. So, I guess you could say my typical day would be doing something that makes me feel alive.