Fighting for the 1 in 26 that will develop epilepsy in their lifetime.

What is 26 Rounds?

Simply, it’s “fighting” to raise money for the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California.

26 Rounds is a grueling yet bonding experience in which participants fight 26 rounds of boxing, kickboxing, BJJ, wrestling or bag rounds. The premier event on March 26th, 2017 raised $4,600. In 2018 we raised $16,000, in 2019 over $20,000!

2020 of course took all the wind out of our sails. 🙁 The foundation was severely impacted by not being able to host fundraisers like 26 Rounds. In 2021 we need to really push to bridge the gap created by the pandemic. Epilepsy doesn’t care if there’s a deadly, global virus. And for some people with epilepsy like Charlotte Figi the impact was too great and a beautiful life is lost.

Please be as generous as possible. Your donations go directly to services and support for the 180,000 people in Northern California living with this common yet terribly underfunded condition.

Watch the video below to see 26 Rounds in action!

Who does this benefit?

26 Rounds supports the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California’s “Camp Coelho” Summer Camp. This unique medically supervised camp gives youth with epilepsy the opportunity to have a sleepaway camp experience. This is taken for granted by most kids but is something that might not otherwise be available to kids with epilepsy. Campers have the opportunity to try a wide variety of activities in a safe, respectful environment, meet other kids just like them, have their first time away from home & build a sense of understanding and lasting friendship.

43,000
Raised to Date!

UPCOMING EVENTS

June 6 Private Event at Practical Martial Arts
in Corte Madera (SF Bay Area)

REGISTRATION OR DONATE NOW

The PMA Black Belt candidates of 2021 have already passed the technique portion of their test. Now they need your help to complete the fighting portion of their test and their required Altruism Project. This year they will combine the two and actually fight to raise money for the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California!

The Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California (EFNC) is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization leading the fight to overcome the challenges of living with epilepsy and to accelerate therapies to stop seizures, find cures, and save lives.The EFNC is dedicated to providing information, resources, and support to the over 180,000 Northern Californians in 44 counties living with epilepsy – including Sensei Mike & Karen’s son, Levi.

The goal is to ensure that people with seizures are able to participate in all life experiences, to improve how the community views epilepsy, and to dispel myths about this condition by providing information through training, events, and programs. Fundraising from this event will do just that! Please join these dedicated Black Belts in their mission to impact the lives of people living with epilepsy…

$26 – Sponsors a Black Belt’s campaign
$100 – Sponsors seizure first aid training
$200 – Sponsors therapy programs
$350 – Sponsors educational programs
$1000 – Sends a child with epilepsy to the EFNC’s medically supervised camp

Thank you for your support!

26 rounds to fight epilepsy
26 rounds to fight epilepsy

Want to host your own event?

Contact Karen Valentine via email:
info (at) practicalmartialarts.net
or The Epilepsy Foundation Northern California: efnca (at) epilepsynorcal.org

About Karen Valentine, founder of 26 Rounds

At age 2 Karen’s younger son Levi was diagnosed with Doose Syndrome, an intractable form of epilepsy. That’s when she found her whole family fighting an unfamiliar battle…one filled with fear and the unknown. During this time her family heard about the EFNC’s Camp Coehlo, a summer camp for kids living with epilepsy. As soon as he was old enough they signed him up. It was an absolutely life-changing week for Levi feeling independent, making friends, adventuring and having a rare “normal” childhood stay at camp. The transformative experience wasn’t just for him though. Karen & Mike and their older son got a week of quality time together without worrying about seizures. Knowing Levi was in the hands of the most qualified & caring people in the world was a feeling money could never buy.

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In 2016, during a long emergency stay at UCSF, she felt compelled to get active in the epilepsy community. She wanted to create an event for the EFNC that was exciting and new. Seeing other amazing, challenging physical events that people had created to further their causes like The Color Run, Tap Cancer Out, Relay for Life and Brave the Bay, she recognized that people were inspired to participate not only because of the reason behind an event but because the event itself offered the participants a feeling of legitimate accomplishment. Since 1 in 26 people will develop epilepsy in their lifetime she came up with the idea: “26 Rounds to Fight Epilepsy”.

26 Rounds is a grueling yet bonding experience in which participants fight 26 rounds of boxing, kickboxing, BJJ, wrestling or bag rounds. The premier event on March 26th, 2017 raised $4,600; well over the goal of $2,600. In 2018, five martial arts schools have committed to each raise $2,600 and Karen is focused on signing up more. David Meyer, 26 Rounds participant & World BJJ Champion said of the event, “I never realized how many people were living with epilepsy. This event helped me understand the need to fund research and services and someday find a cure.”

About Karen Valentine: A native of Marin County, Karen holds a 3rd degree Black Belt in Freestyle Mixed Martial Arts, and co-owns Practical Martial Arts in Corte Madera, with her husband Mike. She was awarded Volunteer Fundraiser of the Year 2017 by the Epilepsy Foundation of Norther California for her event. For more information about visit www.26rounds.org

About the Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California

The Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization leading the fight to overcome the challenges of living with epilepsy and to accelerate therapies to stop seizures, find cures, and save lives.

The Epilepsy Foundation of Northern California is dedicated to providing information, resources and support to the over 180,000 Northern Californians living with epilepsy.

Our goal is to ensure that people with seizures are able to participate in all life experiences, to improve how the community views epilepsy, and to dispel myths about this condition by providing information through training, events, and programs.

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