Join our team and help conquer Juvenile Arthritis! 

Juvenile Arthritis is a degenerative, autoimmune disease. Lilly started showing signs at 1.5 years old. She was diagnosed at age 3. At the time, she only had it in one place. Today, she has Juvenile Arthritis in over 20 places in her body (including organs). Since a young age, she has had to battle weekly injections of methotrexate (low dose chemotherapy). She has them over the weekends because it makes her so sick. She goes to the hospital every couple of weeks to receive infusions. She is also on many medications every day. The combination of these treatments causes her to be immunocompromised and the side effects of them are difficult. In elementary school, she opted to stay in at recess with a heating pad every day so that she could rest up and be ready for academics. Today, she needs help getting out of bed and has to take a hot bath just to be able to get up and moving to make it to school. She works extremely hard to do the things we take for granted! She has also had to have surgeries/procedures and has spent countless holidays and birthdays in the hospital. Through it all, she keeps a positive attitude and  the most amazing smile on her face! The Arthritis Foundation hosts events for Juvenile Arthritis families and helps with research to find better treatments or even better…a cure!