On Friday, September 26th, Peggy Lillis Foundation (PLF) held its 16th Annual Changing the Odds Gala at 26 Bridge in Brooklyn, New York. 120 guests joined us to celebrate PLF’s progress in combating C. diff and recognize four outstanding honorees: Dr. Stacy Kahn, Dr. Jennie Kwon, and Minnie and Spencer Hatch. We  continued with our successful casino theme with several fun games and prizes for the top three “gamblers.” 

Co-founders Christian and Liam Lillis opened the evening by discussing the harm caused by cuts to federal public health agencies and mass firings of CDC, NIH, and FDA staff. Christian said that “our individual and collective health is and always has been political.” He encouraged guests to understand that decisions from funding infectious disease surveillance to determining which communities have clean water are and have always been political. Christian continued, “But political doesn’t mean partisan. Despite what many politicians would have us believe, most Americans want the same basic things: a nice place to live, good schools, affordable groceries, and a government that is responsive to them.”

Liam then highlighted some of the foundation’s accomplishments despite the headwinds facing public health. His examples included: 

• In November, we hosted our first Scientific Symposium. More than 400 doctors, scientists, patients, and industry leaders joined us for a day of learning. Participants rated the event a 9.5 out of 10. We’re hosting our second on November 21. 
• We ramped up our volunteer programs, recruiting and training six new people to join our Advocates Council, Speakers Bureau, and Peer Support.  
• Growing our Peer Support program from 6 volunteers to 10, allowing us to provide one-on-one support to over 60 people battling C. diff.  
• This past spring, we hosted our tenth annual National C. diff Summit and Lobby Day. The Summit featured presentations on C. diff in children, hospital infection prevention, and its impact on patients’ quality of life. 
• The day after our Summit on April 1st, eighteen PLF volunteers from twelve states visited their legislators. Our volunteers spoke with their House and Senate offices about the damaging impact proposed cuts to critical public health agencies will have on access and innovation for C. diff and other diseases. They also shared concerns about the effects of tariffs on the cost of diagnostics, which are already underutilized.

Kate Dougherty, a representative of the Gala’s Presenting Sponsor Nestle Health Science, then offered welcome remarks before introducing this year’s Innovator Award recipient, Dr. Jennie Kwon. Dr. Kwon, who recently joined Northwestern’s Feinberg School of Medicine as Gene Stollerman Professor and Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, has led a distinguished career focused on clinical and translational strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR), including studies of AMR in both the environmental and human microbiome. Her work emphasizes the development of novel, pragmatic approaches for detecting, preventing and treating resistant pathogens, including multidrug-resistant organisms and Clostridioides difficile infections. We were delighted to honor Dr. Kwon and to count her among PLF’s friends.

Following the Innovator Award presentation, Chris Young, the late Peggy’s son-in-law, sang a moving rendition of “Over The Rainbow” as we honored those who have lost their lives to C. diff. Introducing his husband, PLF CEO Christian John Lillis shared that the song resonated with the family, as The Wizard of Oz was one of Peggy’s favorite movies. Christian said that his mother “had us watch it whenever it aired. And she drew and taught life lessons from Dorothy Gale’s adventures. The most obvious lesson is that, regardless of whether we think we’re smart or brave enough, we always have the power to learn and be courageous. And we can always go home.” A video featuring people lost to C. diff, along with the live recording of Young’s rendition, will be released as part of this year’s C. diff Awareness Month campaign. 

Next, our 2024 Advocate Award recipient, Maryann Webb, introduced this year’s honorees: Minnie and Spencer Hatch. In her remarks, Maryann noted that “Since becoming volunteers in 2017, Minnie and Spencer have had many accomplishments. Minnie and Spencer have participated in five C. diff Summits and three Lobby Days. They have lent their stories to numerous awareness campaigns. Minnie has also presented at corporate sales meetings and been interviewed by major publications, including Self Magazine. Minnie is an active member of PLF’s Peer Support program, where she counsels people currently battling C. diff.” 

Our final honor of the evening was our Leadership Award. Introduced by OpenBiome’s CEO Julie O’Brien, this year’s award recipient was Dr. Stacy Kahn. Dr. Kahn is an attending physician at Boston Children’s Hospital, where she directed the nation’s first pediatric fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) program, created the first national pediatric FMT registry, and performed the first colonoscopic FMT in a child, who was 18 months old. Julie spoke of a recent instance that exemplified Dr. Kahn’s commitment to standing “beside families in their most desperate moments. Not long ago, a 7-year-old girl with cancer developed fulminant C. diff. Surgery was not an option, antibiotics had failed, and she was in critical condition. Stacy fought for her life—using three of OpenBiome’s very last investigational treatments. Today, that little girl is alive, thriving, and growing.” 

Throughout the evening, guests enjoyed wonderful food from the Kitchen at Cobble Hill, casino games from blackjack to roulette, and vied for raffle prizes. At the end of the evening, Christian, his nephew Greyson and their friend Mia announced the winners of the casino games and raffle prizes. It was a beautiful evening of remembrance and recommitting to the fight against C. diff infections. 

Click here to see all the photos from our 2025 Changing the Odds Gala