About Laura

Laura King Edwards is a lifelong writer, dynamic public speaker, accomplished runner and passionate rare disease advocate. She is the author of the memoir Run to the Light and numerous essays and short stories. 

Laura was named one of Charlotte’s 50 Most Influential Women in 2019, winning Woman of the Year. She has been nominated for the Global Genes RARE Champion of Hope award for her outstanding contributions to the rare disease community. Laura is the former featured columnist for Batten Disease News. 

She co-founded Taylor’s Tale, a nonprofit organization named for her late sister. Taylor’s Tale is recognized around the world for its accomplishments in the fight against CLN1 disease and other rare diseases. In 2017, her TED talk, Running Toward Rare, captivated an audience of more than 1,100 at TEDxCharlotte. She has run more than 50 half marathons, three of them blindfolded. She is the subject of a forthcoming documentary film, “Blind Momentum.”

Laura is a graduate of UNC Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s in English and a minor in creative writing. She lives in Fort Mill, South Carolina.