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June 22, 2007
Community helps out
Nearly $30,000 is raised for juvenile arthritis.
FREEMAN PORITZ
When David Porte suddenly found out that his two-year-old daughter,
Cassie, had been diagnosed with juvenile arthritis, he was shocked
and shaken.
"We just found out about it one morning in the fall of 2006,"
he said in an interview with the Independent. "Our daughter
woke up.
We took her out of bed and she wouldn't stand up on her leg."
Then he took action. "I just saw this run [the Scotiabank half-marathon
and five-kilometre run] online, raising money for arthritis,"
said Porte. "I couldn't do the half-marathon because I would
never have made it. But I said, 'OK, I'll do the 5k part."
In just one week, David and his wife, Dr. Debbie Setton, managed
to raise nearly $20,000 in pledges through e-mails, thanks in large
part to generous donations made by many members of the Vancouver
Jewish community.
"I sent some e-mails out to some friends and family and some
people I know through work and people started donating money,"
said Porte. "One of the most amazing parts of this whole thing
is I have friends of mine that have donated to it, and their parents,
which are friends of my parents, have donated to it, and their siblings,
which are friends of my brother's, have donated to it. So it has
really been amazing to see two generations of family donating to
me for this run." Porte and Setton also decided to throw in
$10,000 of their own money.
Juvenile arthritis is a condition that affects one in 1,000 children
under the age of 16. It causes inflammation of the joints and may
make it difficult for the child to use all functioning limbs properly.
JA can also stunt a child's growth or cause eye problems. The causes
of the illness are still unknown and there is no cure. However,
precautions can be taken to minimize long-term damage to the joints
and to the child's general well-being.
Porte became a supporter of the Scotiabank run in order to maximize
fund-raising for the Arthritis Society. In its eight-year history,
the run has raised $530,000 for local health programs funded by
Vancouver General Hospital and the University of British Columbia
Hospital Foundation. It's one of Vancouver's elite running events
and athletes from all over the world are flying into town to race
along the scenic West Vancouver and downtown route.
This year's run will take place on Sunday, June 24. The half-marathon
will kick off at the UBC student union building at 7 a.m. and the
five-kilometre run will start at Second Beach at 8:30 a.m. Both
runs will end at Stanley Park. To register, go to www.canadarunningseries.com/svhm.
All proceeds from the run will be donated to the Arthritis Society
and five other local health care-related charities, including B.C.
Children's Hospital and the Heart and Stroke Foundation. Scotiabank
will pay your entrance fee for the race if you raise a minimum of
$100 in pledges for the half-marathon or $50 for the five-kilometre
run.
Despite his daughter's tough diagnosis, Porte remains optimistic.
"I mean, I'm having the worst thing that I could imagine happen,
and this amazing thing happen at the same time," he said. "I
mean, the worst thing is that my daughter's got arthritis and the
amazing thing is that all these people are supporting us."
Freeman Poritz is a Vancouver freelance writer.
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