April 24th, 2010
SPAGHETTI DINNER
BENEFITS ASHLEY'S ANGELS AND WALK ON FOUNDATION INC.
This will be held at St. Andrews United Methodist Church in Milton, PA. Dinner will be from 5-7 followed by a puppet show by Kingdom Kidz Puppet Ministry. Cost is 0-3 FREE, Ages 4-9 $4, and ages 10 and Up $7. Call 428-4147 for tickets.
May 8th, 2010
Dessert Stand
Union County West End Fairgrounds will play host to Cow Flop Bingo/Craft Fair.
Walk On Foundation will hold a dessert stand.
ASHLEY'S ANGELS TRANSPLANT FUND
For Immediate Release Contact Bob Derr, PACFI November 4th, 2009 Email bobderr@ptd.net
"ASHLEY'S ANGELS" HELPING TO FUND TRANSPLANT
Sunbury native Ashley Spotts is like a lot of 19 year-olds - she likes riding her hourse, Flicka, shopping, swimming and hanging out with her friends. She also enjoys working out on the trampoline and driving four-wheelers, dirt bikes, or go-karts. And close to her heart are here two nephews, Allen, 2, and one year-old Jayden. As a 2009 high school graduate, she should have a full life ahead of her.
But unlike a lot of teenagers her age, Ashley has to deal with cystic fibrosis (CF), diabetes, and asthma. Recently, her CF physician at Hershey Medical Center suggested that she go on the list for a lung transplant due to her deteriorating lung condition. CF is the most common genetic disease among children and young adults, and it primarily impacts the respiratory and digestive systems. People with CF have to take digestive enzymes to help their body absorb food and most do three times daily nebulizer/chest percussion treatments to loosen the thick mucus in their lungs. Progressive research has increased the life span median of 37 years, but thirty years ago it was only about 15 years.
Enter Joshua Richard, founder of Walk On Foundation (see www.walkonfoundation.com) in Milton. The Walk On Foundation is a nonprofit organization that aligns the resources of individuals and corporations to impact the lives of community members by providing assistance with medical equipment, safety devices, and financial assistance related to medical hospitalization.
"We really wanted to do something to help this family," RIchard said. He contacted Kingdom Kidz Puppet Ministry (see www.hiskingdomkidz.org) in Milton and they responded favorably. Donna Bridge, the director, noted that the organization began as an outreach ministry of St. Andrew's UMC in Milton in December of 2000. Since then, the ministry team has traveled over 11,000 miles through four states in presenting over 200 programs in churches, nursing homes, block parties, schools, malls, and private events.
Richard also contacted Pennsylvania Cystic Fibrosis, Inc. (PACFI - see www.pacfi.org), an independent, nonprofit, all volunteer 501(c)(3) organization that provides services and supports for families affected by CF and raises funds for CF research.
"We're always willing to help with CF transplant funds," Betty Hollenbach, current PACFI president, said. "And we've been working with the Spotts family for several years in helping them get what's needed for Ashley's health care.
With the approval of Ashley and her family, the many fundraisers being planned will benefit the newly formed Ashley's Angels Transplant Fund. According to Ashley's mother, Christine, Ashley liked the sound of Ashley's Angels because it included her brother, George, who died due to CF in 2004 at 12 years-old. "Ashley's Angels" will include anyone who helps with fundraisers or donates to the transplant fund. PACFI has already donated $1000 to the fund.
"We're going to meet with the transplant staff at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh on Monday, November 9th," Christine said. The hospital is one of the leading transplant centers in the United States. She noted that Ashley wants to keep in touch with her friends and meet new people, so Ashley invites people to email her at ashlinn17@aol.com. Ashley has been hospitalized at Hershey Medical Center for most of the past month.
Lung transplants cost around $550,000, and the hospital staff will tell the Spotts family how much will be paid by their insurance and how much remains to be paid by other means. Many times insurance will pay 80% or more of the costs, and that leaves about $110,000, to be paid by other means. Each transplant candidate is given a "lung allocation score" that is based on several health related items listed by the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). UNOS determines a person's standing on the transplant list based on the severity of their condition. According to the national Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, lung transplants were first performed in the United States in the early 1980's. Today, with progressive improvements, about 90% of people with CF are alive one year after a lung transplant, and 50% survive at least five years or move.
Anyone who wants to donate to Ashley's Angels Transplant fund can make a check out to 'PACFI' and mail it to PACFI, c/o Ashley's Angels, P.O. Box 29, Mifflinburg, PA 17844 or may donate online at www.walkonfoundation.com/9.html and mark your online donation as Ashley's Angels.
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