Helping children with rare genetic conditions grow up with fewer limits
Your gift funds early gene therapy research, and helps families access treatment.
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Every funding request is reviewed by our board.
A child born with a genetic condition such as MSUD grows up with a measured diet, regular blood tests, and trips to the hospital whenever they get sick. Flourishing means a childhood that is not organized around a lifetime of treatment.
What MSUD means for a child, and what one treatment would change
Maple syrup urine disease is inherited. A child with MSUD cannot break down three amino acids in protein, and every meal adds them to the blood. This is what the disease looks like today, and what the research is trying to replace.
- The first days
A newborn screen catches MSUD at birth. Without treatment the first crisis usually comes within the first week, as the amino acids build up and cause swelling in the brain.
- Every day after
A strict, measured low-protein diet for life, with medical formula replacing most food, and regular blood tests to track amino acid levels.
- Any illness
A fever, a stomach bug or a missed meal can tip the balance. Families learn to go to the hospital early, and to go often.
- The transplant option
A liver transplant can free the diet, because a healthy liver processes the amino acids. It is major surgery, needs lifelong anti-rejection medication, and a transplanted liver can fail.
- The goal: one treatment, early in life
Gene therapy gives the body a working copy of the missing gene so the child's own liver can process protein. The aim is a single treatment soon after diagnosis, in place of a diet or a transplant. The research is early. Harvest of Compassion funds early gene therapy research like this.
Where these diseases live
1 in 400
MSUD live births among Old Order Mennonites in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the highest known rate in the world. That is why the work started here. It is not where the work ends.
- Lancaster County, PA
- The highest concentration of MSUD anywhere, and the home of Harvest of Compassion.
- Brazil, Portugal, Turkey, the Philippines
- Regions with MSUD rates well above the general population.
- Everywhere else
- About 1 in 200,000 births. A therapy developed for one community is meant to reach all of them.
- TNNT1 and GM3
- Rarer than MSUD, each present in small communities in several countries.
Sources: UMass Chan Medical School, 2025 to 2026.
We started here, among our neighbors. We know these families, and we know what an ordinary day costs them.
You want to help. Knowing where your gift makes a difference should be simple.
The Harvest of Compassion Foundation is a new nonprofit, and we say so plainly. Here is how we put every gift to work.
Our board reviews every request.
Each funding request is reviewed and approved by the Harvest of Compassion board before any money moves.
How funding requests work →We work with clinics.
Harvest of Compassion works with clinics that care for these families every day.
You see where it goes.
Funded projects are listed on this site, and donors get an update when the research moves.
Duane Zimmerman John Stoltzfus Jr. Jordan Martin Travis Horning Mike Stoltzfus
About Harvest of CompassionThree simple steps
Give once or monthly.
Choose an amount that fits you. Gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
The board directs your gift.
Gifts fund early gene therapy research for rare genetic conditions, then treatment access for families.
See the progress.
You get an email when the research moves or a project is funded.
Rare conditions, one method
The groundwork for a gene therapy is the same across many rare inherited diseases: patient data, natural history, and the preclinical first steps.
MSUD
Maple syrup urine diseaseThe body cannot break down three amino acids found in protein. Managed today by a diet for life or a liver transplant. Most concentrated in Lancaster County.
TNNT1
Nemaline myopathyAn inherited muscle disease that affects breathing and movement from infancy. Occurs in small communities in several countries.
GM3
GM3 synthase deficiencyAn inherited condition that affects brain development from infancy. Occurs in small communities in several countries.
The Harvest of Compassion Foundation is an independent nonprofit. It funds the early groundwork and treatment access for this pipeline. It works with clinics and research organizations, and it does not develop or sell the therapies itself.
Children with rare conditions deserve progress, too
Research on rare diseases often never starts
The market is too small for drug companies to begin. Families keep managing MSUD the way they have for generations: measured meals, constant testing, and fear with every fever.
One treatment, early in life
The goal is a single treatment early in life, so a child can eat with friends and play hard. Your gift helps fund the early research needed to work toward that future.
Give todayGive to Harvest of Compassion
Donations fund the earliest stage of gene therapy research first, and treatment access for families second. The Harvest of Compassion Foundation is a 501(c)(3), so gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
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Checks payable to Harvest of Compassion, mailed to 691 Fivepointville Rd, Denver, PA 17517. For a gift of stock or a donor-advised fund grant, email info@harvestofcompassion.org and we will send instructions.
What happens after you give
Emailed to you right away, with the amount and the tax-deductible status.
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Get first-look research updates
One email when something moves: a project funded, a research step completed, a date families should know. No more than once a month.