PLAYBILL: Graceful Adaptation

Graceful Adaptation

Where Laughter Alchemizes the Weight of Chronic Illness

AWARENESS FUNDRAISER

2026

WELCOME TO LAFF WITH YOUR LOVE 2026 To Our Beloved LAFF Community, What began as a small act of courage has become a movement of resilience.

LAFF was born out of diagnosis. Out of questions. Out of fatigue that did not look like fatigue. Out of strength that had to be redefined.

But tonight — we gather not in sorrow — We gather in joy.

Multiple sclerosis changed the way I move through the world.

It slowed me.

It humbled me.

It refined me.

And somewhere between infusion appointments and invisible symptoms, I learned something sacred: Adaptation can be graceful.

Tonight is about laughter as medicine.

Faith as grounding.

Community as covering.

We are no longer labeled disabled.

We are a community of All Abilities.

Thank you for showing up.

Thank you for believing.

Thank you for laughing with your love.

With gratitude and fire, Dahria & John Fernandes

Graceful Adaptation

ABOUT LAFF WITH YOUR LOVE OUR COMMITMENT

LAFF With Your Love is a community-centered fundraiser and awareness movement that began with a personal diagnosis and grew into a collective declaration.

Originally focused on multiple sclerosis awareness, LAFF now supports individuals and families navigating: • Autoimmune disease • Chronic illness • Neurological conditions • Invisible disabilities In collaboration with National Multiple Sclerosis Society, LAFF raises awareness, fosters education, and builds compassionate community.

We believe: Laughter is resilience.

Awareness is empowerment.

Adaptation is not defeat — it is evolution.

LAFF With Your Love is the intersection of purpose and production.

PAUSE — A Movement for a Moment — was created to hold sacred space in the midst of life’s interruptions. It is a wellness-centered platform that integrates grief education, legacy development, faith formation, and holistic healing across generations and cultures.

At its core, PAUSE teaches one powerful truth: When we slow down long enough to feel, reflect, and reorient — transformation becomes possible.

Ten 25 Productions brings that vision to life through experience design, storytelling, and community-centered events. Where PAUSE shapes the message, Ten 25 builds the stage. Where PAUSE carries the heart, Ten 25 amplifies the voice.

Together, this collaboration merges: • Advocacy with artistry • Education with entertainment • Laughter with lived experience • Faith with functionality LAFF With Your Love exists because purpose met production.

And when those two unite — movements are born.

WHAT IS MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS? Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system.

The immune system mistakenly attacks the protective covering of nerves (myelin), disrupting communication between the brain and body.

MS may impact: • Movement • Vision • Speech • Cognition • Energy • Sensation No two warriors experience MS the same way.

It is often called an “invisible illness” because many symptoms cannot be seen — yet are deeply felt.

LIVING WITH MS: A PERSONAL LENS

MS is not just a medical condition.

It is a daily negotiation.

Fatigue that feels like gravity increased.

Cognitive fog in the middle of a sentence.

Arms that won’t lift past a certain degree.

Pain without warning.

And yet…

We adapt.

We honor our “ouch.”

We find new rhythms.

We redefine strength.

Graceful Adaptation means: Accepting limitation without surrendering identity.

Adjusting without shrinking.

Living boldly inside changing bodies.

MEDICAL THERAPIES SNAPSHOT Current disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) aim to slow progression and reduce relapses.

Therapy

Therapy

Delivery

Goal

Ocrevus

Monoclonal antibody

Delivery

Reduce relapse

Kesimpta

Monoclonal antibody

Delivery

Slow progression

Tysabri

Monoclonal antibody

Delivery

Prevent immune cell migration

Oral DMTs

Various

Delivery

Immune modulation

Treatment is individualized.

Management is evolving.

Hope is active.

Host Marlon Baker

Opening Remarks Host Welcome & Introduction

Speakers Performer:

8:15 PM

8:20 PM

Dinner Served: Bless the Food

DJ Prelude Performer: DJ Dolla Bill

Stand-Up Comedian Performer: Shanie D

Stand-Up Comedian Performer: Stephon

Stand-Up Comedian Performer: Mike Britt

Not So Silent, Silent Action Auction, Gratitude & Host Farewell

8:40 PM 9:00 PM 9:20 PM 9:45 PM 10:35 PM

Each comedian tonight stands with the LAFF community — not just to entertain — but to elevate awareness through humor.

Because laughter disrupts fear.

THE LAFF CREW

PRESENTS, WELCOMES, & GREATLY APPRECIATED

D.J. Dolla Bill Curator of Sound

Rey Royale Vocal Artist VIP - Cocktail Hour

HOST: Marlon Baker Comedian

COMEDIAN

D e i n a Sh

COMEDIAN

Stephon

COMEDIAN

Mike Britt

EMBRACE WARRIORS The LAFF Community recognizes those living with chronic illness as:

Embrace Warriors Warriors not because they are fighting to win, but because they are choosing to live.

WE HONOR: • Those in treatment • Those in remission • Caregivers • Medical professionals • Families adjusting together

EXPERIENCE STATIONS Tonight you may engage in experiential stations that simulate: • Cognitive overload • Fine motor difficulty • Fatigue layering • Visual distortion These stations are not entertainment.

They are empathy.

Understanding changes perspective.

Perspective builds compassion.

OUR SPONSORS

To Our Sponsors: You do more than fund an event.

You stand in solidarity with invisible battles.

GRACEFUL ADAPTATION REFLECTION

Pause for a Moment.

1. Where in my life am I resisting adaptation?

2. What would grace look like in my body right now?

3. What could laughter heal if I allowed it?

You are invited to carry this reflection beyond tonight.

The LAFF Climb Initiative In 2026, we rise higher.

Join our LAFF Climb Team.

Sponsor a Warrior.

Walk. Climb. Advocate.

Because movement looks different for everyone.

PAUSE, Inc.

PAUSE is A Movement for a Moment — an intergenerational, multicultural wellness platform dedicated to: • Grief education • Holistic wellness • Legacy development • Faith-centered resilience From diagnosis to destiny, we create spaces for healing and purpose.

CLOSING DEDICATION This evening is dedicated to: Those who adapt quietly.

Those who advocate loudly.

Those who are tired but show up anyway.

Those who laugh even when it hurts.

May you leave tonight lighter.

Seen.

Understood.

Strengthened.

And may you always LAFF With Your Love.