Raising awareness on Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
Strength and compassion can be measured in a multitude of ways. Next Saturday, February 29, it will be measured by the actions of a community coming together to support a very special cause.
“Raise to Rise - Help a child walk again”, is a public walk organised by the J. I. A Foundation Sri Lanka to raise awareness of the condition known as Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, or JIA. While arthritis is known, the scope of those affected by JIA has remained veiled in Sri Lanka.
Young student and “Raise to Rise” organiser, Anya Raux faced one of the biggest challenges of her life when she was diagnosed with JIA at just 11 years. It was this experience, along with the support of her family and school friends which motivated her to shed some much needed light on this condition.
JIA is the most common form of arthritis found in children under 16 years of age. The autoimmune disease causes a child’s immune system to attack their joints, causing intense pain and irreversible damage, if left untreated. One of the central challenges of this condition is that it affects a wide range of areas within children’s bodies which in turn can make diagnosis difficult. Anya is all too familiar with this situation as she received her own complete diagnosis only after three months.
It was in November of last year that Anya and her friends began their own initiative against JIA in the form of the J.I.A Foundation Sri Lanka. The Foundation took its first steps by making handmade cards and other hand crafted items to be sold at pop-up stores in Colombo to raise awareness. Spurred by that success, Anya decided larger steps were necessary.
Following years of treatment, Anya is now able to lead a normal life and take part confidently in sports and other activities. “Due to my experience with juvenile arthritis, I wanted to raise awareness about the disease and its symptoms in order to help children with JIA get diagnosed and treated as early as possible,” she says.
One of the other major issues “Raise to Rise” aims to address is accessibility. According to Anya, while resources may be available to a limited extent, families often are unable to access these lifealtering treatments as they cannot afford to travel to rehabilitation centres on a regular basis. As such, the proceeds generated from the walk will be used to start a fund to help children access medication and treatment. Proceeds will also be donated to the Ragama Rehabilitation Hospital and the Lady Ridgeway Hospital to help acquire wheelchairs, crutches and other necessary equipment.
Join the J.I.A Foundation members and others on February 29 at 4.30 p.m as they walk from Galle Face to the Air Force grounds, and take part in the fundraiser event that follows at 6 p.m. at the Air Force ground featuring a variety of musical performances and stalls.
Register for the walk at Galle Face and purchase your fundraiser event tickets priced at Rs. 1000 or opt for the package deal consisting of event registration, an event T- shirt and a fundraiser event ticket for Rs 1500, available at the Commons Coffee House, Raux Brothers and the Coffee Bean (Maitland Crescent) outlet.