In the spring of 1998, Bev Anderson met Grant Whitney in the DeWitt Center parking lot as both, including Grant’s wife, were looking for a new Interfaith Food Closet location in Auburn, California. When Bev got out of the car, she used her cane because the grass around the intended site had not been mowed and the ground looked uneven. She said, “I use a cane because I have peripheral neuropathy.” Grant responded, “I have peripheral neuropathy, too. Have you joined The Neuropathy Association?”
Bev said she hadn't heard of it before. That night, she joined online and sent in the requested dues. She received the newsletter listing support groups, but there were none near Auburn. So, she asked Grant if he would be interested in helping form a support group in Auburn if they could garner enough interest from others. They secured the meeting room at Bakers Square Restaurant for the first Monday of the month; with their first meeting planned for November. A mailing was sent to current members by The Neuropathy Association, and an article submitted to the Auburn Journal.
Bev and Grant expected a half-dozen or so and made 12 copies of some handouts. They were pleased to welcome 33 people. At the end of the meeting, those there said “We are meeting next month, aren't we?” This group has met nearly every month since and continues to this day in 2023.
The publicity reached an area as far away as Sacramento. A gentleman there told Bev by phone that it was too far to come to Auburn so they would start a group there. He conducted the first meeting in the evening at Kaiser on Morse Avenue in December 1998.
By the end of 1999, Carolyn Clarke of the Auburn Group had started a group in Grass Valley, so the group changed its name from Central Placer Neuropathy Association to The Neuropathy Association of Placer and Nevada Counties. The Roseville Neuropathy Group started in January, 2000. The Neuropathy Association asked that the group consider incorporating so they could run their own business within California and be tax exempt as well. Incorporation came on May 18, 2001, and with it the name change to The Northern California Chapter of The Neuropathy Association.
The first Board of Directors Meeting was held on Thursday, May 31, 2001. Those elected at this meeting as the first Board of Directors were Bev Anderson (President), Mary Lou Baum (Director), Carolyn Clarke (Secretary), Yvonne Huber (Treasurer), and Grant Whitney (Vice President).
Through the years, the organization secured a website; increased its newsletter publication from quarterly to monthly; sent board members to governance, grant writing, and fundraising training; partnered with other organizations; developed a corporate sponsorship program; held leadership meetings; and partnered with a professional association management company for administrative services.
The current organization is titled Western Neuropathy Association designating, at the time, the geographical location of the support groups in California, Oregon, and Nevada. In 2020, two Texas support groups, Austin and Houston, joined the organization. That year Covid-19 changed our way of offering support and care to our members from in-person meetings to virtual meetings. While our physical locations have greatly decreased, our virtual meetings enjoy increased attendance each month. People are still suffering from peripheral neuropathy and still need the support the WNA brings.
In 2022, Beverly Anderson, President, retired due to medical reasons. Current President Pam Hart, former Board Secretary, continues to lead the organization in supporting peripheral neuropathy sufferers through information and education, caring and hope.