Sixteen years ago, Leilani Dunmoyer's mother was diagnosed with Huntington's Disease. Today, Leilani is gene-positive, her brother has HD, and her three children are at risk. The UC Davis team has been with them every step.
Sixteen years ago, Leilani Dunmoyer's mother received a diagnosis that the family had never heard of.
Leilani Dunmoyer — gene-positive, HD family advocate, and marathon runner for the HD cause
Huntington's Disease.
"It came as such a shock," Leilani says. "We did not know where to turn. We just felt hopeless and helpless."
What followed is a story that too many HD families know — the desperate search for information, for community, for someone who understands. But for Leilani, living in Sacramento, that search led somewhere remarkable.
"Thankfully we live in Sacramento and I found the UC Davis Center of Excellence."
A Team That Becomes Family
The UC Davis HD Center was first run by Dr. Wheelock, and now by Dr. Duffy. Leilani has been a patient of the clinic through both.
"We have been so, so grateful for them and all of the love and support that they have offered us over the years," she says. "They have definitely become like family — right from the get-go."
That phrase — "right from the get-go" — speaks to something important. The UC Davis team doesn't take time to warm up to their patients. They arrive fully present from day one.
The Dunmoyer Family's HD Reality
Leilani's situation is one that HD families understand with painful clarity. Her mother was diagnosed. Her brother has HD. Leilani herself is gene-positive. And her three children are all at risk.
"We are committed," she says simply. "We are part of the Huntington's family."
Rather than retreating from that reality, Leilani has leaned into advocacy. She participates in clinical trials through UC Davis whenever she can. She runs marathons to raise awareness and funds for HD research. She wears the CA for HD shirt — part of Team HD — to represent California in the national fight.
"Any chance we get to participate in clinical trials, we do," she says. "And any fundraisers — particularly, I'm a runner and getting to run marathons to raise awareness and raise money for Huntington's — it's just been great."
Why Geographic Access Matters
For families in Northern Nevada, the UC Davis HD Center of Excellence isn't just the best option — it's the only option within reach. The clinic is over 130 miles from Reno. For families like the Dunmoyerss, who live in Sacramento, they are fortunate to be close.
But for 90+ Northern Nevada families making that two-hour-plus drive, the clinic's continued operation is everything.
"They offer clinical trials through UC Davis," Leilani points out. "Any fundraisers — we are there."
That's exactly why NVforHD exists. The annual golf tournament is not an abstraction — it's the mechanism that keeps a team of neurologists, psychiatrists, genetic counselors, social workers, physical therapists, and researchers in place for families who have nowhere else to go.
"So Grateful to Be Part of This Wonderful Team"
Leilani ended her message the way she lives — with gratitude and forward momentum.
"I'm so grateful to be a part of this wonderful team. Thank you so much for letting me share my story."
She's not just a patient. She's a runner, an advocate, a mother, and a voice for everyone in the HD community who once felt exactly what she felt sixteen years ago — hopeless and helpless — until they found the right people.
NVforHD's annual charity golf tournament — May 29, 2026 at Gray's Crossing Golf Club, Truckee, CA — raises funds directly for the UC Davis HD Center of Excellence. Join us or donate →
