Raising money to fight hydrocephalus

Next month, the Jennie E. Hewitt School will host a walk to raise awareness about, and funds to help cure, hydrocephalus, a condition that causes a buildup of fluid in the brain.

Hundreds of thousands of people in the country are afflicted with hydrocephalus. Many of them are adults suffering from a brain injury, but many are children that are born with it. One to two children out of 1,000 are born with hydrocephalus.

One of those children is Teddy Moore, a student at the Hewitt School. His mother, Andrea, is organizing the walk on April 11 to benefit the Hydrocephalus Association.

Since he was born, Teddy, a first grader, has had 26 brain surgeries because of his hydrocephalus. He recently underwent a cranial expansion, in which doctors enlarged his skull to make room for his brain to grow.

“My son has catheters in his left and right ventricle that leads to his shunt, and that shunt leads all the way into the belly,” Andrea Moore said. “And then he has a stent in his third ventricle that doesn’t attach to his shunt.”

Because of his condition, Teddy is a little smaller than his peers. He also suffers from some short-term memory loss.

“His personality is remarkable,” Andrea said. “He’s like an old soul. There’s not a student at Hewitt that doesn’t know him. When he walks into the hospital, they all say, ‘Hi, Teddy!’”

The walk is being held at the school to help show kids that there is something they can do to help. “We do a lot of fundraising in school,” said Elizabeth Pryke, principal of Hewitt. “And to do a fundraising effort that helps one of their peers really has great meaning, and it will become a lifelong practice for them if they make a connection to why they’re fundraising.”

All of the students at Hewitt will participate in the walk. All the students will go out and walk a lap around the soccer field during their gym periods. Classes that don’t have gym that day will be paired with another class so everyone gets a chance to walk.

First graders will also go to an assembly to learn more about hydrocephalus. “They will talk briefly about hydrocephalus and what they’re walking for,” Pryke said. “But the assembly and educational piece is really more for Teddy’s peers, because we don’t want them to be fearful or afraid around Teddy.”

The walk at Hewitt is a precursor to a larger walk held by the Hydrocephalus Association in the fall. All of the money raised will go to HA, which funds research into hydrocephalus. It is still unknown why some children are born with the condition.

Forms to help solicit donations were sent home with all students. There is also a webpage that people can donate to. Those who want to support the walk and donate can do so at http://bit.ly/1rq36Le, or by talking to a student at Hewitt.