Senator Betty Little is pictured with (left) Upstate New York Lupus Alliance of America Executive Director Honi Kurzeja and (right) Janet Rucki, a dedicated volunteer for Lupus Alliance of America, in theWell of the State Legislative Office Building.

Senator Little was one of several speakers at a Lupus Awareness Day reception on Wednesday, April 28 to raise awareness about the disease and its impact on those afflicated and their families.

More than 105,000 New Yorkers suffer from the often debilitating effects of Lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease that can cause severe damage to the tissue and organs of the body and, in some cases, cause death.