ONE OF LIFE’S great complexities is our ability to be more than one thing, despite outside perceptions of who we are. Your coworker may quietly be a great painter. Your favorite actor’s true passion may lie in the garden.
Each life is a tapestry, appearing differently depending on the vantage point. Bernie Williams is best known as an all-star centerfielder in baseball and four-time world champion. Less well-known is that he’s an award-winning jazz guitarist and composer whose performances have graced some of the world’s most renowned music venues.
He is also a dedicated advocate whose work has been shaped by a deeply personal experience: a caregiver for his late father. Williams’ father died of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF)—a progressive form of interstitial lung disease (ILD)—in 2001. The loss turned the athlete and musician into a passionate advocate for ILD awareness.
It was in the midst of his playing career that his father—the man he considers a “superhero” and taught him how to hit a ball and play guitar—began experiencing dry coughs and colds that wouldn’t go away. Those health concerns lingered. Maybe it’s… I don’t know,’” Williams said during the Men’s Health Lab panel Beyond the Scars: Navigating Life with Interstitial Lung Disease.
Even then, I was like, ‘What’s idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis?’ We didn’t know anything about it.” WHILE HE DIDN’T realize it then, his family’s experience with IPF inspired Williams’ future advocacy. Today, he partners with Boehringer Ingelheim, a global leader in ILD research and treatment, on Beyond the Scars, a campaign developed to educate patients and caregivers about ILD. Through the campaign, Williams hopes to raise awareness of conditions like IPF and help reduce the risk of misdiagnosis—so fewer people are left asking the same question he did: “What’s idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis?” ILD is a not a single disease, but an umbrella term for over 200 lung conditions—including IPF—that can cause inflammation and scarring, or fibrosis, in the lungs.
It can be difficult to diagnose, and too often it’s caught years into the condition—which is problematic, as early detection is critical to receiving treatment that can extend life and slow the disease’s progressive nature. Unfortunately, Williams’ father’s condition was not caught early. Not knowing what his family was up against, Williams says they were ready to do whatever had to be done, especially since he thought of his dad as a fighter in all aspects of life.
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