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Walking for Rett Syndrome

About one of every 10,000 females are diagnosed with Rett Syndrome. At MC, senior Kelley Helisberyg is one of these females.

“Rett Syndrome is rare neurological disorder that affects the brain’s growth and development, making it unable for a person to walk, speak, and [perform] basic functions of the hands,” junior Nicole Moore said. 

Nicole Moore
Photo credit | Jenna Nicolas

Friendship Club members, Nicole Moore and Leonna Hari teamed up to create an event to bring awareness to Rett Syndrome and raise money for the International Rett Syndrome Association because funding for a cure is highly overlooked. On May 26, MC students and members of the community united together to support this cause.

Moore and Hari were heavily inspired through Helisberyg’s mother, who professed her concerns about the funding of this cause, and wanted to take this matter into their own hands and execute it to the best of their abilities.

“[Helisberyg’s] mom was telling us about how it was her dream to put on a walk. She just didn’t have the resources or time,” Hari said. “I did some research, and it didn’t look too hard. So I [thought], ‘okay, why not?’”

The walk was composed of fun events for the participants, which created an uplifting spirit to be felt, simultaneously bringing greater awareness to the cause.  

“We had [MC senior] Kate De Los Santos perform, we had Mr. Bird set up spike ball, and then we had face painting, and henna,” Hari said. 

Leonna Hari
Photo credit | Jenna Nicolas

In the end, Moore and Hari were greatly satisfied with the result of the walk, and intend t0 continue promoting the cause.

“For our first time I’m pretty happy, because we raised about $3000 from donations from the community, people registering for this event, and sponsor check from RESNET,” Hari said. “But I think next year it’s going to be a lot bigger and better,” Hari said. “My goal is to have like 200 to 300 people shop and raise at least double what we raised.”

This event proved to be very impactful, but it’s just the beginning and Moore and Hari exemplify hope in bringing more awareness to Rett Syndrome. Through their efforts, they created an impact on the community that will hopefully continue to flourish and bring awareness to Rett Syndrome.

Written by Jenna Nicolas

Jenna is a senior at MC, and she is the Co-Editor in Chief as well as the Photo Editor for the MC Sun!

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