MassME thanks Bob Robitaille, volunteer Advocacy Coordinator

A Big THANK YOU to Bob Robitaille who is ending his tenure as volunteer Advocacy Coordinator for MassME/CFS.

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Since 2018, Bob has coordinated our efforts with SolveME/CFS to ensure all Massachusetts legislators are visited during National ME/CFS Advocacy Day.  Bob’s work included recruiting constituents from every Massachusetts congressional district as well as identifying meeting facilitators and acting as facilitator himself for several meetings.  Thanks to Bob’s efforts, Massachusetts is one of the most active and reliable states that participate in Advocacy Day.  What began in 2017 as two MassME members walking the halls of congress has grown to nearly 100 members and friends attending video meetings with congressional and senate leaders each year.  During Bob’s breakout 2018 season, he personally organized in-person appointments at every Massachusets congressional office in D.C. -- nine offices in two days -- frequently bringing in a constituent via video feed on his tablet computer.

Bob was also one of the organizers of the Unrest event at the Massachusetts State House in April 2018, which was attended by principals or staff from 40 of the state legislative offices and which had two state senators as hosts.  The event was held in support of access to Telemedicine, which would allow homebound patients to see doctors using videoconferencing (Hmm.. a little before its time).   Bob also has helped to coordinate other state house actions in support of the MEAction Millions Missing campaign.

Although “retiring” as our volunteer coordinator, Bob will continue patient services work, offering his hard-earned expertise on disability counseling, which he discusses in this Interview with Llewelyn King.  The Massachusetts ME/CFS and FM Association, our friends and partners are all indebted to Bob Robitaille and the entire Robitaille family for sharing their time, talents, struggles and friendship.

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Congress2016 1

Documents used in Congress visits March 2016