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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 13, 2017)
JANUARY 13, 2017, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A3 A pocket of warmth t h A L 0 4 NU AN BROUGHT TO YOU BY OREGON STATE FAIRGROUNDS (JACKMAN-LONG BUILDING) KEIZERTIMES/Andrew Jackson Cows huddled together near the intersection of Chemawa Road Northeast and Verda Lane Northeast for warmth and grub on a snowy morning Tuesday, Jan. 11. MDA, continued from Page 1 “I had problems through- out my pregnancy and Allison was born six weeks premature – she weighed three pounds 14 ounces. She had to have a high-calorie formula to gain weight and she started missing development markers,” Eliza- beth said. Even after fi nding a doctor willing to take the developing issues more seriously, it took another nine months to settle on a diagnosis. Mitochondrial myopathy is a rare genetic disease, but one covered in the research performed by the MDA. Mi- tochondria are specialized compartments in cells that create 90 percent of the ener- gy needed by the body. When they don’t perform their job correctly, it can lead to a host of symptoms ranging from blindness to coma to develop- mental regression. In Allison’s case, one of the primary symptoms is general weakness. After years of spe- cialized care – Elizabeth es- timates Allison has been the subject of more than 300 tests in her short life and she’s been taken to the emergency room at least two dozen times – the pain walking caused her be- came too much to bear. “I had a back brace, but I would get too hot because I can’t regulate my body tem- perature. I just wanted to try something else than keep try- ing to correct it on its own,” Allison said. A lengthy MRI revealed that Allison’s spine had be- come tethered by other tissue, and it was causing more than just pain. The arc of her back was preventing her lungs from growing and they already op- erate at a reduced capacity. She underwent one surgery to release the connective tis- sue, then another to install a “halo” brace to help straight- Stories We Like Saluting the people that make us proud of our community capitolauto.com en her spine was followed by a lengthy stay at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Port- land. The last surgery was the most worrisome, to the point that Elizabeth, Allison and her brother David all took a Make-a-Wish trip to Dis- ney World. Allison’s ability to maintain basic life supporting functions like breathing while undergoing the operation to install rods and pins support- ing her spine was a concern, but she made it. “There must have been lots of prayers because she sailed through,” Elizabeth said. In the two years since, Al- lison has grown four inches and walking doesn’t hurt as much. She’s even started tak- ing some classes at McNary High School after being homeschooled for much of her life. She started with a creative writing class last fall and will take physical science and a wellness class next term. The operations revealed other issues that still make daily tasks more of a chore than a fully able teenager would encounter – the latest need in her life is actually a new wheelchair-accessible van – but Allison is as vibrant a teenager as one could hope for. Her next big service proj- ect is making cookies for local fi rst responders as an American Heritage Girl, a Christian-based scouting or- ganization. She is a voracious reader with an interest in photogra- phy and the great outdoors, but she had made attempts to fundraise for “mito” research even before facing down some of her own challenges. Now that she holds the title of MDA ambassador, it feels a bit like the fulfi llment of a dream. “I like it because I get to meet a lot of new people and I get to be part of rais- ing money for research, even some for kids that are dealing with mito,” she said. While she has a big year ahead, Allison shows no signs of slowing down. “Whenever we go shop- ping, we look for stuff on clearance and we buy art sup- plies, cake supplies and party supplies so that kids going through halo surgeries at Do- ernbecher get to have par- ties,” Allison said. Friday, January 13 11am – 7pm Saturday, January 14 10 am – 7pm Sunday, January 15 10 am – 5pm FREE ADMISSION & PARKING Salem Library launches reading project Salem Reads: One Book, One Community – a commu- nity reads project that invites the public to read the same book, take part in discussions and enjoy related programs throughout the month of Feb- ruary, has selected Spare Parts by Joshua Davis as this year’s community book. Spare Parts tells of four Lati- no teenagers and their journey as they are encouraged by two inspiring science teachers to build an underwater robot and enter the Marine Advanced Technology Education Robot- ics Competition. The following upcom- ing events will revolve around Spare Parts: • Friday, Jan. 13, 7 p.m. in Loucks Auditorium. A screen- ing of the fi lm based on the book. • Saturday, Jan. 14, 2:30 p.m. in Loucks Auditorium Under- water Dreams, a documentary based on Spare Parts will be screened. • Sunday, Jan. 22, 2:30 p.m., the Salem Library Foundation will give away 500 free copies of Spare Parts. • Saturday, Jan. 28, noon to 3 p.m. Salem Reads robot expo, which will feature the Cheme- keta Community College Ro- botics Program Chair and his team demonstrating all sizes of working robots. • Tuesday, Feb. 21, lecture by the author at 7 p.m. For a full listing of all related events, visit salemlibrary.org. KEIZER CLASSIFIEDS EMPLOYMENT MISCELLANEOUS MISCELLANEOUS Drive with Uber. No experience is required, but you’ll need a Smartphone. It’s fun and easy. For more information, call: 1-800-819- 1182 ONAC Do you owe over $10,000 in back taxes? 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