Welcome To Crohns Core
Help me, Help us Find A Cure
Honored Hero 2010
Making Crohn’s the Core of Her Focus - A young woman speaks up on her disease and the journey on which it’s taken her
Sacramento, CA – With a love for laughter and a
gift of creativity, Kady Munroe should be enjoying her youth, thriving
in her second year of college, spending most of her free time with
friends, and preparing for her future. Instead, Kady lives day by day
with her disease as her main focus. As CCFA’s honored hero, Kady is raising awareness by
asking her community to help find a cure for her disease and
participate in the annual walk and festival - Take Steps for Crohn's and Colitis - to be held at the State Capitol on May 1, 2010 at 5:00pm.
With walks happening across the nation, Take Steps is the largest event
dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life of those
adults affected by these seldom-discussed diseases. Crohn’s and
colitis, two painful, chronic diseases of the digestive tract (often
referred to as Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD)) affect over 1.4
million Americans, prohibiting many day-to-day activities. The diseases
interrupt the ability to attend school, play sports, work, or sustain
interpersonal relationships. Crohn’s disease occurs in people of all
ages, but is primarily diagnosed during the prime of life in
adolescents and young adults. Kady was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease three years
ago. In addition to surviving high school and being a teenager, Kady’s
life was abruptly interrupted by intense stomach pain, rapid weight
loss, vomiting, nausea, and fatigue. As a result, Kady was forced to
miss school frequently and found herself faced with depression. "It was
and still is the hardest thing I have ever been through," Kady says.
After meeting with her physician, Kady quickly learned that she might
need a blood transfusion and was severely anemic. She continued to lose
weight, a total of 80 pounds. Too sick to leave the house, Kady began
losing her friends and the life she’d always known. After enduring a
colonoscopy and endoscopy, two very invasive and uncommon procedures
for someone her age, Kady learned she might have colitis. After further
investigation, doctors diagnosed her with Crohn’s disease. Kady was
placed on a rollercoaster of medications, many of which had little, or
even adverse effects. She was given steroids which caused fluid
retention and facial swelling, embarrassment to add to her unrelenting
symptoms. After six months of painful enemas, countless
prescriptions, and strictly watching her diet, Kady found her health
improving. She started going out with friends again, laughing again,
and even earned her diploma. Kady still experiences the ups and downs
of her disease, becoming very sick at times, undergoing severe
treatments, and taking high doses of medication. But she hasn’t stopped
fighting. With her family, friends, and long-time boyfriend, Art, by
her side, Kady has channeled her pain into action. Everyday, she is
more and more motivated to beat Crohn’s disease. To get out the word,
Kady began a website, providing a local forum to discuss Crohn’s and
colitis. She began designing stickers, collecting cans, and hosting
benefits to raise money for a cure. In 2009, Kady’s Take Steps team,
"Crohns Core", raised over $2,200, only a portion of the total
donations she’s secured for CCFA’s research efforts. And, most
recently, Kady has spread the word virally about her disease, posting
Youtube videos of her most recent treatments and pushing for a segment
on MTV. Crohn’s disease will be with Kady for the rest of her life, but she
remains hopeful that, through the efforts of the Crohn’s and Colitis
Foundation of America (CCFA) and her own strong voice, a cure will soon
be found. To support and participate in Sacramento’s Take Steps for Crohn’s and Colitis Walk, visit
Tracy Press
Hundreds of young people will rock to the tune of six metal bands in Modesto this weekend to raise awareness and money for Crohn’s disease, an incurable illness that swells the intestinal track.
The concert is the brainchild of Kady Munroe of Tracy, who pairs her battle with Crohn’s disease with her passion for music to raise money for a cure.
The 16-year-old’s life took a turn two years ago in her sophomore year at Tracy High School when she was diagnosed with the disease. Kady barely ate, her immune system weakened and she dropped nearly 60 pounds. Within a few weeks, school turned from a cherished social affair to an impossible challenge.
"I thought she was going to die," said Janis Munroe, Kady’s mother. "We’d see the scale go lower and lower each day."
Last spring, Kady transferred to Delta Charter High School where she set her own pace to make up for about a school year’s worth of work. The worst symptoms of the disease have faded over the past six months. She still takes 16 pills a day and uses her short spurts of energy wisely.
"As I started to feel better, I wanted to do something to help," Kady said.
That’s when the possibility to find a cure for Crohn’s disease came into focus.
"Just sitting here won’t find a cure," she said. "We need everybody to come together to make it happen."
Kady has raised $2,500 for Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, and she said she hopes to raise more than $700 on Saturday.
The trunk of her car is usually full of bags of soda cans for her "Cans for Crohn’s" fundraiser, which she started last spring. Kady snaps photos of friends and family and hands her earnings over to Crohn’s research. Her father, a dwarf car racer, sells stickers at races and donates winnings to the fund he dubbed Speed the Cure.
Kady also plans to host a bake sale and a second benefit concert in October as well as form a team to walk at the Crohn’s fundraiser, Guts and Glory, on Sept. 8 in Sacramento.
"It’s extraordinarily brave and impressive that she’s putting this amount of energy to raise awareness and much needed money," said Tamara Block, executive director of the Northern California chapter of CCFA.
Performers are I Shot the Sheriff from Fremont, The Beaches of Normandy from Tracy, The Let Down from Ceres, La Circa from Stockton, Portrait of the Artist from Patterson and 5 Characters in Search of an Exit from Pacifica.
To get to Kady's Web site: www.crohns-core.com
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