Madeline Festa, 2.5 of West Haven, participates in Danbury’s Walk to Cure Arthrities. She is one of 300,000 children diagnosed with the disease
Folks participating in the annual Walk to Cure Arthritis in Danbury on Sunday.
When Ryan Rizzo was just a mere toddler, a swollen knee and inability to crawl prompted a diagnosis that left his parents reeling: juvenile arthritis.
On Sunday, sixteen years later, Ryan’s father and Danbury businessman Tony Rizzo Jr. was walking the Immaculate High School track as chairman of the sixth annual Walk to Cure Arthritis in Danbury. This is one of the signature events for the New England region of the Arthritis Foundation that is committed to raising money to find a cure for the crippling disease that impacts more than 50 million adults and 300,000 children.
Rizzo said his family was fortunate that they were able to find treatments and help for their son, but was overwhelmed with the large numbers of children diagnosed, many who may not be able to access the assistance they were able to find for their son.
To learn that some 300,000 children are diagnosed with this disease “is staggering to me,” Rizzo said.
So the Rizzo family are now ambassadors for the Arthritis Foundation. Beyond this fundraising walk, the Rizzos also are the organizers of a summer golf tournament; between the two events between $100,000 and $200,000 is expected to be raised to help the foundation toward its goal of finding a cure.
Despite a brisk, windy morning - the sun trying to peek through the clouds – some 200 residents, some from other parts of the state, arrived early Sunday morning to walk between one and three miles around the Immaculate track. Some were optimistic and wore shorts and T-shirts _ some colors and logos were selected to honor a loved one with the disease - others were bundled under jackets and hats.
One toddler, Madeline Festa of West Haven, who has extended family in Danbury, was decked out for her walk in orange neon sneakers, a pink shirt with her team name _ Madeline’s Battling Buddies _ and a well-loved Teddy Bear. Madeline is one of the 300,000 children in the nation who live with this chronic disease.
Standing next to Madeline was Barbara Allan, the author of “Conquering Arthritis,” who at the age of 25 couldn’t walk or open a door knob. Today, Allan is an avid bike rider, and on Sunday limbered up for her walk by jumping up and down. She credits her recovery as much to the support and advocacy she found through connections with others with similar diagnosis as she does to medicine. She praised the foundation’s efforts to make those connections and work for a cure.
“Maybe in 10 years we won’t have to have these walks,” Allan said.
Arthritis facts:
_ It is the number one cause of disability in the nation.
_ It costs the U.S. economy $128 billion annually.
- It affects 50 million adults and 300,000 children, or 22 percent of the national population.
For more information or to make donations, visit www.arthritis.org