Baptist Health and Borland Groover Clinic announced this month that they will be serving as Platinum Sponsors of our First Annual Bottoms Up for CCFA to raise money for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA). The event will take place Weds., Oct. 7, at Pusser’s Bar & Grille, 816 A1A N., from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Joining them in sponsoring the event are Entera Health and Smart Pharmacy.
Bottoms Up is an event tied to Take Steps Jacksonville which occurred last May 16 at Riverside Park. Take Steps walks are held in 145 communities nationwide and have succeeded in bringing together over 100,000 people and raised close to $32 million to help further the mission of CCFA. Jacksonville’s goal was to raise just under $45,000 and Bottoms Up will help the organization to meet that commitment.
Tickets to Bottoms Up are $25 in advance and $30 at the door and include hors d’oeuvres and adult beverages plus music by Ryan Creary. Tickets are available in advance at http://online.ccfa.org/jaxbottomsup.
Once again Jordan Buss of St. Augustine will serve as the event Honored Hero, just as he did for Take Steps Jacksonville. Buss, a US Navy Veteran, had his military career cut short by Crohn’s and Colitis, considered a disability, and he is now an aircraft mechanic at Northrup Grumman’s St. Augustine facility.
“When I was diagnosed and found that I could no longer serve in the Navy,” Buss said, “I felt like I had been turned upside down and my future dreams had fallen out of my pockets. I did not even know what Crohn’s was. I have come to realize you cannot feel sorry for yourself and bad things do happen to good people, but you must stay strong. My best advice is to keep your head up and find the things that make you happy.”
Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis — which affect nearly 1 in 200 people — are painful, medically incurable illnesses that attack the digestive system. Crohn’s disease may attack anywhere along the digestive track, while ulcerative colitis inflames only the large intestine (colon). Symptoms may include abdominal pain, persistent diarrhea, bleeding, fever, weight loss and fatigue. Many patients require hospitalization and surgery. Most people develop the diseases between the ages of 15 and 35; however, the incidence is increasing in young people.
The mission of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America is to cure Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults affected by these diseases. Eighty-three cents of to every dollar raised by CCFA goes to research, patient support and advocacy and raising awareness for the little know known and misunderstood disease. The organization consistently meet the standards of organizations that monitor charities, including the American Institute of Philanthropy and Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance. In 2015, Charity Navigator awarded CCFA four stars for the fourth consecutive year.
The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA) is the largest voluntary non-profit health organization dedicated to finding cures for Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). CCFA’s mission is to cure Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults who suffer from these diseases. The Foundation works to fulfill its mission by funding research, providing educational resources for patients and their families, medical professionals, and the public, and furnishing supportive services for those afflicted with IBD. For more information, visit www.ccfa.org, or call (888) 694-8872.
