Teen named honorary chair of Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s ‘Gutsy Walk’
A teen from Welland who has raised more than $25,000 in the past half-decade to combat a condition she has lived with since she was 10 will be put on a national virtual stage later this summer to continue her fight.
Emma Haist, who just completed Grade 10 at Welland Centennial Secondary School, was diagnosed six years ago with Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disease.
Sufferers may experience abdominal pain and cramping, severe diarrhea, rectal bleeding, weight loss and diminished appetite.
The annual Crohn’s and Colitis Canada Gutsy Walk, in its 25th year, was supposed to take place in regions across the country in June — but the COVID-19 pandemic has paused the occasion so online events are being organized for Aug. 23.
Haist has been regional honorary chair twice, but in 2020 the 16-year-old has been named national chair.
In an interview Wednesday before a flag raising at Welland city hall, she said she’s honoured to be given this recognition.
The city marked May 19 as a day to recognize the condition, but the government shutdown postponed it.
Haist has been in remission for the past five years thanks to medication that has successfully treated her condition — after many years of trying to find one she found effective.
“In the beginning, it was definitely a bigger challenge than it is now,” she said.
She had to wear a nasogastric tube immediately after her diagnosis to school and even while playing soccer that summer.
Going six weeks without food until she was gradually able to eat again plus injections every other week when she was “terrified” of needles were two of the biggest hurdles she had to overcome in the earlier days of having the disease, for which there is no cure.
“The first year was very difficult because you have to find the proper medications that allow your body to heal,” she said, adding she must be careful with her diet.
Since age 11, she has been taking injections of Humira, a biologic medication, every two weeks. The people close to her have been there for her along the way.
“All my friends were very supportive. They tried their best to understand what I was going through,” she said.
Her mother, Marlene, said her family is “very proud” of what the teen has accomplished, fundraising and bringing awareness about the disease.
Haist has taken part in the walk annually, and has received tremendous support from Welland Fire and Emergency Services, where her father Roger is a captain for Station 5.
She has sold T-shirts and bracelets, hosted barbecue events and sets up shop occasionally at the local Sobeys store to raise money.
You can donate to her cause at cr ohns and colitis canada. akaraisin.com/ui/gutsywalk2020/participant/ 2056359.