May 26, 2005


Helping a friend in need

Local playgroup sets up lemonade stand to raise money for Arthritis Foundation

A group of friends whose bonds were forged when they met at a new moms class at Good Samaritan Hospital have gathered together their most formidable sales force—kindergartners—to raise money to fight a disease that has affected one of the children: arthritis.

Playgroup friends of young juvenile rheumatoid arthritis victim Lindsey Fredericks help raise money for the Arthritis Foundation with a lemonade sale in Almaden Valley.

The sales people at a recent lemonade stand in Almaden Valley were only about 3 feet tall and many of them had missing front teeth. But neighbors and people driving were charmed by the little kindergartners and dug deep into their pockets to raise an impressive $193.

“We were not expecting to raise that much, but everyone who passed by donated money to the cause,” said playgroup member Ellen Takeuchi of Almaden.

But that wasn’t the only fund-raising effort the group put forth. They also participated as a group in the Arthritis Foundation Walk last weekend, raising awareness for a cause that has affected member Kelley Fredericks’ young daughter Lindsey.

Lindsey’s story
Lindsey Fredericks barely remembers the excruciating pain of living with arthritis, but not because of her old age.

Lindsey is only 5 and a half, and suffers from juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, or JRA. But her mom, Kelley Fredericks, remembers it well.

“One day she was fine,” Fredericks said. “Then over two or three days, Lindsey was in so much pain she couldn’t walk, stand or be touched.” That was two years ago, when Lindsey was 3.

To make things worse, Lindsey’s symptoms appeared the week before Christmas when everything was closing down in the Fredericks’ hometown of Los Gatos.

Her 104-degree temperature, rashes and swollen joints scared Lindsey’s family and pediatrician, who in 27 years had never seen a case of systemic JRA. After numerous doctor visits and blood tests, JRA was finally considered a possibility.

Lindsey Fredericks

Lindsey’s “ouchies,” a word her mother used to explain the pain to her daughter, prevented her from doing the simplest of tasks. Lindsey wore the same pair of pajamas for days because her parents couldn’t take them off because of the pain it caused their daughter.

That Christmas, Lindsey got her very first bike from Santa, but asked to be taken off after a few minutes. The pain was too much.

The day after Christmas, they took Lindsey to Stanford Medical Center where, although the diagnosis would take six weeks, she was treated for JRA immediately.

The first few weeks were trying. Daily blood tests, medicine six times a day, and constant hot packs were standard. Because of the medication, Lindsey was constantly tired and didn’t grow for a year.

“Play time” took place in the morning before the pain got too bad, and usually centered around Lindsey sitting at a table, not going outside.

Fredericks, a stay-at-home mom, has taken a very active role in Lindsey’s condition. In addition to caring for Lindsey and her older sister Lauren, Fredericks works very closely with the Arthritis Foundation.

The Arthritis Foundation Web site (www.arthritis.org) offers updates on treatments and medicines and is a valuable resource to arthritis patients. The Web site also posts information on events, like the Arthritis Walk that was held May 21.

May, which is National Arthritis month, is when the majority of donations and fund-raising for the Arthritis Foundation take place, according to Christine Mancuso, manager of special events for the Arthritis Foundation’s northern Californian chapter.

“This year three walks will take place in the Bay Area; San Francisco, San Jose and San Ramon,” said Mancuso. “It is the first year we are having a walk in San Jose, so we are hoping to get the word out.”

Each arthritis walk is actually split into two walks, a 1-mile walk and a 3-mile walk. Lindsey will be the honoree at the San Jose walk, and looks forward to completing the 3-mile walk with her family.

Fredericks is helping to organize the walk and has been spreading flyers throughout South Bay school districts encouraging young people and families to register and walk.

“I want people to know that arthritis is not just a wear-and-tear disease, and it is not just an old person’s disease,” said Fredericks. “It is my mission to educate people.”

Lindsey’s visits to Stanford Medical Center are less frequent now and she looks forward to visiting with Dr. Peter Chira, who she refers to as Dr. Peter-Pancake.

“(When I grow up) I want to be a doctor who helps kids with arthritis,” said Lindsey. “And work with Dr. Peter-Pancake.” That’s something she came up with on her own, said Fredericks.

Thanks to the advances in medicine and treatments, Lindsey spends her days like any other 5 year old, playing with her sister and friends from school. Shots every other day prevent the “ouchies” from coming back, and allow Lindsey to live happy and pain free.

For more information visit the Arthritis Foundation’s Web site www.arthritis.org