Mission Viejo 8-Year Old Named Youth Honoree for Orange County's "Walk To Cure Arthritis"

Karla Garcia, 8, Named Youth Honoree for

Orange County Arthritis Walk

OC “Walk to Cure Arthritis” at Angel Stadium, June 1, 2014

(Orange County, CA) - - The Arthritis Foundation, Pacific Region, Has named Mission Viejo’s Karla Garcia as Youth Honoree for the “Walk to Cure Arthritis”, to be held at Angel Stadium on Sunday, June 1, 2014.

Karla (Lolita) Garcia, now 8 years old and in third grade at Del Cerro school, Mission Viejo, was diagnosed with Polyarticular Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis (JRA) at the age of one and a half. As a baby, Karla never had the ability to crawl. She was unable to nap during the day and often couldn’t sleep at night due to excruciating pain. It took eight months, countless X-rays, MRI’s, and many visits to several doctors, until the diagnosis was made. The doctors continued working toward an effective medical treatment and finally worked out a regimen that is improving the quality of Karla’s life.

Karla has limitations with everyday activities, like showering, getting dressed, brushing her teeth and hair, buttoning clothes, and certain activities in school. She finds it difficult to hold a pencil to write during class. She couldn’t ride a bike or climb on some of the playground equipment. Because her legs are different lengths with one foot larger than the other, she walks with a limp. However, Karla is a positive, outgoing, courageous girl who fights everyday against this disease.

Today, at 8 years old, Karla enjoys playing with her friends, dancing, singing, listening to her favorite music group “One Direction”, and hopes to pursue her dream in acting.

As Youth Honoree for the 2014 Walk to Cure Arthritis, Orange County and Inland Empire, Karla’s goal is to bring awareness of JRA to the public, raise funds for ongoing medical research and to be a positive face for juvenile arthritis. The Walk will be held on Sunday, June 1st, at Angel Stadium.

About the 2014 Arthritis Walk To Cure Arthritis

About 53 million people live with arthritis, the nation’s leading cause of disability. The Walk to Cure Arthritis raises funds and awareness to fight the nation's leading cause of disability. The Walk helps the 53 million of people who live with arthritis pain and funds research toward a cure. There are 1.2 million adults in Los Angeles County, and 42,000 children in California, who suffer from arthritis. About 400,000 people in Orange County suffer from arthritis. For more information about the Orange County Arthritis Walk and to register, call: (949) 585-0201 or visit: http://www.ocarthritiswalk.org/

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Contact:

Lois Julien

PR/Arthritis Walk For A Cure

Julien Communications

(818) 222-6790

LoisJulien@roadrunner.com