Thank You, Jim: A True PC Warrior
After years of dedicated service, longtime Board member Jim Rittle is stepping down from the PC Project Board of Directors. While we’ll certainly miss his perspective around the Board table, we’re even more grateful for the countless ways he has inspired our community.
Like many volunteers, Jim’s journey to Board service was shaped by both timing and purpose. As an airline pilot and father of young children, he spent years supporting PC Project whenever he could. But when his children were older and his schedule became more manageable, the opportunity to serve arrived at just the right moment. During a research meeting, Janice mentioned that the organization needed to fill its Board. Jim casually offered to help, and a few months later, he received the call.
For Jim, serving on the Board wasn’t simply about governance. It was about changing how people with Pachyonychia Congenita see themselves.
One of his proudest moments came during a brainstorming session when he introduced a phrase that has become part of our community’s identity: “PC Warrior.” To Jim, being a PC Warrior means having the knowledge to understand the disease, the confidence to speak about it openly, and the courage to help others along the way.
Jim remembers a time when many people with PC, himself included, tried to hide their condition. Today, he sees something very different.
“I no longer hide but I embrace Pachyonychia Congenita.”
Watching young children, experienced adults, and families openly share their stories has been one of the greatest rewards of his Board service. Instead of suffering in silence, patients are finding their voices, educating physicians, supporting one another, and proudly identifying themselves as members of the PC community.
When asked what stands out most about the people of PC Project, Jim answered without hesitation: passion.
He recalls a moment when Janice quietly leaned over during an event and remarked, “Everyone wants to help the children.” Those simple words stayed with him. Over the years, he has come to believe that the patients, families, researchers, clinicians, staff, and volunteers who make up PC Project are among the most compassionate and determined people he has ever known.
Jim is also realistic about the challenges that remain.
“There are days,” he says, “when I hate the word hope.”
Living with chronic pain has taught him that hope alone isn’t enough. What gives him confidence is something more tangible: the extraordinary scientists, physicians, and researchers who continue asking difficult questions and pushing the science forward. While he doesn’t know when treatments or a cure will arrive, he remains confident that the work being done today is moving us steadily closer.
Before stepping down, Jim has one final message for the PC community—and, true to form, he doesn’t mince words.
If you haven’t completed the PC Patient Registry, do it. He believes participating in the Registry is one of the most valuable contributions any patient can make to advancing research. Every completed Registry helps researchers better understand the disease and brings us one step closer to effective treatments.
Jim closes his Board service with gratitude.
He says that while PC has taken him to some very dark places, it has also introduced him to remarkable people—friends, researchers, physicians, fellow patients, and families who understand what it means to live with this condition. He leaves the Board with deep appreciation for everyone who has contributed to PC Project’s mission and with complete confidence in the future of the organization.
And perhaps the best way to honor Jim’s legacy is with the words that have become his trademark:
Get out there and be a Warrior for all PPKs.
