Strength and hope: Support Kids with Brittle Bones

In Ecuador, living with osteogenesis imperfecta means facing fractures from a simple hug, growing up with pain from childhood, and every step carrying a risk. But thanks to the Ecuadorian Foundation for Osteogenesis Imperfecta —Fortaleza de Cristal— hundreds of boys and girls have achieved what once seemed impossible: walking safely, growing with less pain, and looking to the future with hope.

Our Foundation not only supports families—it also provides high-level medical treatments based on the most important advances in the world. For over two decades, we have had the guidance and support of Dr. Francis Glorieux, a leading expert in the treatment of this condition who, from 1973 to 2011, was Director of Research and Founding Director of the Genetics Unit at Shriners Hospital for Children – Canada.

Thanks to this invaluable collaboration, the Foundation has built a strong technical and medical infrastructure, allowing the application in Ecuador of the treatment protocol developed by Dr. Glorieux. This approach has shown clear results: increased bone density, reduced fractures, greater patient autonomy, and above all, a quality of life that was once unimaginable.

Since Shriners Hospital learned about our Foundation’s work in 2000, they have offered not just knowledge—they’ve shared their science, their experience, and their hearts. They helped us establish rigorous diagnostic and follow-up processes, trained us in the use of advanced treatments, and strengthened every technical area that today ensures specialized and safe care.

Every child treated represents a story of transformation. It’s not just about health: it’s about dignity, freedom, and reclaiming childhood.

Today, we want to keep moving forward. Our goal is to ensure annual treatment for more than 80 children in 2025, and to include dozens more who are waiting for a chance. To make this happen, we need allies who believe in medicine with impact, in science with purpose, and in compassion with structure.

You can be part of this story.
With your donation, you make it possible for this medical-humanitarian network to keep growing. For the legacy of Dr. Glorieux, who passed away this year, to continue touching lives. And for more children in Ecuador to finally live without fear of breaking.

Help us keep strengthening bones… and futures.