2019 Jingle Bell Run Honorees

Lydia Clark
Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
Youth Honoree

Lydia Clark is 6 years old and lives in Evansville, IN. Lydia was diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) in July 2018, meaning she has arthritis in 4 or more joints in her body. Leading up to her official diagnosis, Lydia was suffering from leg and ankle pain, limping, and pain, inflammation and loss of range of motion in her wrists and fingers. The I in JIA stands for idiopathic, which means there is no known cause for Lydia’s arthritis.

At the time of her diagnosis, Lydia was 5 years old, so she did not really understand why she suddenly had to take so much medication. The first few months, she had to take daily oral medication, and receive a weekly injections. This unfortunately wasn’t helping, so a biweekly injection of a second medication was added. They were told she was finally in medicated remission in April 2019. She must continue the routine of oral medication and injections for a year of medicated remission, and then potentially begin to wean off of the medications to see if her arthritis flares up again.

Even though Lydia has arthritis, she doesn’t let it get her down. She is very active in cheerleading and does this for 3.5 hours each week, on top of all of the tumbling and flipping she does around the house. She doesn't let her arthritis get her down.

Join Lydia in her fight against arthritis, register or donate today!