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Health & Fitness

Help 6 year old Camryn Reach her goal!!!

laurencmcdonell, Neighbor
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Camryn Rose is a Newark, CA resident who lives with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Uveitis. She is this year’s Junior Honoree for the Jingle Bell Run/Walk at Lover’s Point in Pacific Grove on December 14th, 2013.

Camryn was diagnosed with Poly-articular Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) at 15 months of age in 2008. She struggled walking, eating and playing as the arthritis quickly effected over 12 joints on her body. She has been seen by pediatric specialists from Lucile Packard to her current doctors at Kaiser medical center and has been treated with many different immunosuppressants with temporary success but never remission. After a routine visit to her Ophthalmologist in November 2010, they saw complications that affect a small number of JIA patients, Uveitis. Uveitis is a swelling of cells in the eyes that can lead to temporary vision loss, even blindness. She has recently switched to a new medication, and although it’s too soon to tell, things are looking good and her eyes are almost under control! 


If you saw Camryn you would notice her, but not because she has JIA. You would see an intelligent, happy, six-year-old girl always wearing a big beautiful smile, without any outward signs of her illness. She is very caring and is always thinking of others. Earlier this year, her Nurse planted the seed of donating her hair to little girls who got really sick and lost theirs. Camryn thought that was a great idea but she loved her hair too much to part with it. As the months went by, Camryn started asking more questions about the process and how it would work (she didn't want to have to shave her head!). Two months ago she was at her scheduled hair appointment and that seed sprouted. She cut 12 inches from her hair so that she could give it to someone who lost their own hair due to an illness! She selflessly gave away a piece of her that meant a lot, to help someone else.

Camryn's Page

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http://jinglebellrunpacgrove.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1069483&lis=1&kntae1069483=672DA75C571648129022686349E5ED90&supId=390749188

Camryn is now in first grade and is practicing for her third soccer season. She really wants to be the goalie, a position that scares a lot of her little friends; getting accidentally kicked is not her concern. Even on the days that she has difficulty walking, running or tying her shoes, she has never let her illness define who she is; she takes on each day as a new adventure.

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Camryn is supported by a countless number of family, friends, and doctors who help her through her good and bad times. For Camryn, mornings are the hardest and when she is the stiffest. She can be totally immobilized. Some days she wakes up and has no problem getting ready for school, on other days she can’t even walk to the restroom, let alone squeeze her toothpaste out and brush her teeth. Rarely do we get a warning that her mornings will be rough so it’s a day by day battle. Some of the things we do to make Camryn’s struggles less discouraging are taking time to lie in bed and “play” a bit before trying to get up, her sister always helps her with her toothpaste, the handles on our faucets don’t require a grip and when we walk to the car in the morning, we walk all like “flamingos” and get our knees as high as possible, taking all the time we need. Her school is very supportive and understanding that there are some mornings that we can’t control tardiness and that takes the stress of being late off Camryn’s plate. We have been so fortunate to be surrounded by such a positive community that never judges or makes her feel different. Her bravery fills us with admiration and bittersweet emotion.

 

Last year, Team Camryn (19 participants) was awarded one of the top 5 fundraisers!!! That's HUGE! We had two corporate donations but aside from those, not one person donated over $50... That shows and proves to me that no donation is too little! Already this year we have 41 participants supporting Team Camryn! 

 

We have set our goal pretty high, $10,000! Why? Because the foundation needs all the monetary support they can get to help find a cure OR a less aggressive way to treat arthritis. There are over 300,000 children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) in the United States and Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in America today. Right now Camryn is taking medications that are considered chemo treatments... Can you imagine a 6 year old on chemo?! Some other side effects of her medications are that she may develop lymphoma or other blood cancers as she gets older. As parents, we had to weigh out the risk verse the benefit and pray that it is the best choice for her. 

 

Thank you for taking the time to read Camryn's bio. We hope you either decide to join Team Camryn (the more the merrier!) or donate to our Team! Below is the link to view everything online. Keep a look out for updates on community fundraising such as a night out at Reb Robin or Family Pizza night, etc... We thank you for your time.

Date: December 14, 2013                               

Time: 7:30am

Place: Lovers Pt., Pacific Grove          

Register www.jinglebellrunpacgrove.kintera.org

 

Team Camryn:

http://jinglebellrunpacgrove.kintera.org/faf/search/searchTeamPart.asp?ievent=1069483&lis=1&kntae1069483=5BE598779B0E4E9D8B46D2CFA11AB63F&team=5629730
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