Wagner Alumna and Writer Emily Rekstis Makes an Impact Raising Awareness about Huntington’s Disease

Wagner Alumna and Writer Emily Rekstis Makes an Impact Raising Awareness about Huntington’s Disease

Just a year after graduating from Wagner College, Emily Rekstis (class of 2014) found herself giving a speech alongside the musician Abe Guthrie, grandson of the famous American folksinger Woodie Guthrie, about the subject of Huntington's Disease. How she got to this place was through writing. Today, not only is Emily earning a living by writing as the Beauty Assistant at SELF Magazine, but also she continues to make a difference in others' lives.

Emily published a thoughtful, personal article, "What It's Like to Be in a Family Cursed with Huntington's Disease," about her relationship to her father. Huntington's Disease is a fatal genetic neurodegenerative disorder that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain. Eventually, body organs fail, the individual looses the ability to talk and walk, and he or she dies a slow, agonizing death. Children have a 50% chance of inheriting the gene that causes it.

What is difficult to talk about is the emotional impact on families and how they support their loved one. Many suffer the consequences of genetic diseases alone or in silence, but Emily's article was effective at communicating the struggle. When one writes about anything, one never knows if others will read it or if it will make a difference. It's hard to know if the sentences on the computer screen hit the right note. Because Emily's article was such a comfort to many around the country, the Huntington's Disease Society of America (HDSA) invited her to speak at their annual Team Hope Walk alongside the grandson of Woodie Guthrie, perhaps the most famous person to have had the disease. She was also invited to HBO's premier screening of The Lion's Mouth, a documentary film about Huntington's, and has since consulted for a facility that gives care to those suffering from the disease.

Emily Rekstis (left) with her family

Emily Rekstis (left) with her family

This month is when college seniors prepare for their graduation, but it is also Huntington's Disease Awareness Month. Last year, Emily personally raised $1270 for research on the disease, and she intends to do so again this year, demonstrating that writing can make a difference.

Emily's career as a writer began when she was a student at Wagner College, where she took internships at various magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire. At Marie Claire, she wrote articles and had her own by-line. Later, she interned for another Wagner alumna, Jeannine Morris (class of 2005), writing content about beauty products and learning more about the complex business of on-line publishing.

After graduating from Wagner, Emily took a risk and began to freelance. She wrote tirelessly and pitched story after story to various magazines. The stereotype of a writer is that they sit alone all day and stare at their computer screen, but this is only a part of the truth. Being a writer also requires endless activity, networking, keeping up with new information, and negotiating different points of view while trying to stay true to oneself. In addition to writing about fashion and beauty products, Emily also wrote more personal human interest stories for Elite Daily. It is a very difficult way to begin a career, especially if one has student loans to pay, and for her first year out of college Emily had to supplement her income by waitressing in the evenings and weekends.

Eventually she gained a temporary position at Harper's Bazaar as a freelance beauty assistant, and from there landed a permanent position at SELF Magazine with her own by-line and an office in the famous Condé Naste building which also houses Vanity FairVogue, Glamour, GQ, The New Yorker, Wired, and Pitchfork, among other well-known periodicals.

Last month, Emily joined other recent graduates Lexi Smail and Tom Scarcella  to give back to their alma mater by speaking with junior and senior English majors about how to succeed at school and the job market -- and about how Wagner College prepares one not only for a career but also for life.