Our daughter, Caroline Blandford, was six months old when she got transverse myelitis. Four years later she is starting her second year of preschool, and continuing the slow road of rehabilitation and recovery. Last spring, while in her first year of preschool, her school agreed to donate the proceeds of its annual hop-a-thon to the Transverse Myelitis Association. Over $4200 was raised and donated through this fundraiser, as well as increased community awareness of this condition.

Every year, St. Paul's Nursery School, in Cincinnati, Ohio selects a charity to raise money for with an Easter Hop-A-Thon. Each student hops 100 times, and collects pledges of a penny a hop, a dime a hop or a set dollar amount. We were familiar with the hop-a-thon because our 6 year old son, Zach, attended St. Paul's before Caroline. When discussing Caroline's condition with the schoolteachers and administrator, including her labored walk and her struggles to get potty trained, we decided to ask the administrator if she would consider donating the hop-a-thon proceeds to TMA. We got this idea, in part, from the information we had read about the Reading for Rachel program. Much to our pleasure, the school administrator readily and wholeheartedly agreed to allow us to use the hop-a-thon to raise funds for, and awareness of, transverse myelitis.

Thus, in April 2001 the students of St. Paul's Nursery School jumped 100 times for their friend Caroline, and the Transverse Myelitis Association. Family, friends, coworkers at Kohnen & Patton, LLP, and Caroline's classmates spread news of the Hop-A-Thon by letter, email, and word of mouth to raise money through pledges. A local ABC TV station, Channel 9 News, had a story and the local newspaper, the Northern Hills Press had a front-page article about Caroline and the Hop-A-Thon. There is a permanent link to the article at http://www.myelitis.org/articles/index.html. Even Caroline joined in the hopping, after weeks of practice and anticipation, never noticing that both feet could not leave the floor at the same time when she hopped. Through everyone's generosity, over $4200 was sent to the Transverse Myelitis Association in the name of St. Paul's Nursery School. Also, the nursery school administrator has indicated she would love to have another hop-a-thon in Caroline's honor in spring 2002.

Caroline was six months, and had been winning a two-week battle with a summer cold, when she woke up with warm legs, not moving from the waist down. Initial diagnoses of meningitis and Guillian Barre were quickly rejected. Luckily, even before a definitive diagnosis was made, doctors at Children's Hospital in Cincinnati began treatment of Caroline with high dose steroids within 12 hours of her admission, in case she had transverse myelitis.

Caroline was hospitalized for eight days before she was released. In that time she never moved her legs, and could no longer sit, roll, crawl, or do any of the baby activities she had done just days before. After being brought home from the hospital, Caroline made some small movements that gave hope for the future. However, the milestones were slow and far apart, coming only when hope would start to fade. Two years later, after Caroline finally began taking small unassisted steps, doctors and therapists admitted they never expected her to walk.

Today, Caroline is a talkative, outgoing four-year-old who loves Barbies and playing with her older brother, Zach. She attends regular preschool, and is even playing on a four and five-year-old recreational soccer team. Caroline doesn't remember a time she was any different physically than she is now, and does not see herself as any different than any of her friends. Her unfailing positive energy has tremendously lightened our concerns for her, and caused many friends to remark they forget her struggles when they are around her.

However, signs of transverse myelitis are still there. Caroline wears braces on her legs, occasionally gets botox injections, takes ditropan, and is catheterized several times a day since her bladder does not consistently and fully void. Right after the hop-a-thon, her legs were put in bivalve casts to help strengthen them as they grow. Caroline was not slowed down by the walking casts on both legs, but instead was excited because she got to pick the colors, pink and purple. She falls down often, but gets right back up without a tear or second glance. Weekly physical therapy is part of life for Caroline, a playtime she looks forward to.

Caroline's experience with transverse myelitis has opened our family to a world we never expected to visit. The recent hop-a-thon overwhelmed and touched us as so many people reached out and became involved. It is impossible to express in words what it means to have family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, classmates, and even some perfect strangers contribute to a cause they probably know very little about. I would encourage everyone to keep their eyes open for opportunities to raise funds and awareness for The Transverse Myelitis Association, so that you too might feel the warmth of others reaching out to help.

Steve, Colleen, Zach and Caroline Blandford