The Palm Beach Post
Walkathon raises funds, awareness to fight neurological disorder
Dozens of people turned out Saturday morning for a walkathon in support of efforts to combat Chiari Malformation, a neurological disorder that affects 300,000 people in the United States.
The participants in the annual walk, this year Okeeheelee Park in West Palm Beach, included spouses, parents, children and victims of Chiari Malformation.
“So many people feel alone or may not even know this disease exists, or that what they are feeling is not normal, ” said Meaghan Richter, Conquer Chiari Walk Across America chair and participant. “The walk is a way for people to connect with others that can relate to them or their friends and family.”
Chiari Malformation, which affects individuals of all ages and races, is a disorder in which the brain descends the bottom of the skull, applying unwarranted pressure onto the spine. Those diagnosed suffer a wide range of symptoms including severe headaches, neck and shoulder pain, loss of motor control, respiratory problems and weakness in limbs.
Richter said connecting people to the disorder became the mission of Conquer Chiari in 2004, when the foundation first developed on a national platform. Eager for opportunities to spread awareness for a disorder so unrecognized, the foundation developed The Conquer Chiari Walk Across America as a series of coordinating walks held across the country on the same day.
The event’s seventh anniversary in 2015 was hosted in 84 locations across the U.S and raised over $640,000 from the nearly 13,000 individuals that took part. This year, the goal was to expand to 41 states, said Richter.
For Richter specifically, the walk signifies a deeper connection to the disorder; a personal battle that, if it not have been for one brain surgery and three spinal procedures, was likely to constrain her to a life of bodily pain and restricted movement.
“This disease has changed my life in so many ways,” she said. “I have many limitations and always seem super picky, but it is just me having to accommodate to the pain that I am in, or trying to avoid.”
On Saturday, though, Richter handed out t-shirts that read “Conquer America,” and reflected on her diagnosis five years ago, the pain that has accompanied it and the strides she has made since.
“[After my diagnosis] I made it a personal goal to one day feel physically up to being able to chair a local walk,” she said.
Kara Wilson, 17, of Davenport, Fla., was also there to raise awareness, and research dollars.
“I was diagnosed when I was eight,” said Wilson. “We travel all over to support this disorder.”
So was Bernadette Frank from Jupiter.
. “There is not enough research and we need more medical personal that are trained,” said Frank, 43, who was diagnosed in 2011 with the disorder
This year, Conquer Chiari, formally known as C&S Patient Education Foundation, aims to heighten the walk’s presence among community members, expanding outreach and acquiring much needed research funds due to the substantial absence of federal donation.
With the contribution of $25 per party, as recommended by the organization, participants of the walk are providing a fighting chance for children, mothers, fathers and friends who are battling Chiari Malformation on a daily-basis.
