Ja'Kerria and J'Son Walker are 12-year-old twins from Georgia, and like all twins, they share a lot of the same things in life, including sickle cell disease. However, J'Son was diagnosed with a much more serious form of SCD, and as a result, has required much more significant treatment than his sister, according to an article about the twins written by the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC).
Throught their lives, J'Son has endured many health challenges, including an aneuyrysm back in 2010 that resulted in a 55-day coma, as reported by WALB News. During those times, however, the family has received much-needed assistance from RMHC and its network of chapters around the country that provide families of sick kids with places to stay, so that they can remain close to each other during treatment.
And this month, RMHC had an even bigger blessing to bestow on J'Kerria, J'Son, and their family -- a trip to the Rio Olympics with the bonus opportunity of participating in the Opening Ceremony right alongside #TeamUSA! "The children are a part of the global McDonald's Olympic Kids Program, which celebrates the spirit of friendship -- a key message of the Olympic movement," states RMHC in their post. "McDonald's has sent children to the Olympic Games before, but this is the first year the children will participate in the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games."
We can't think of a better way for these twins to celebrate life and friendship than together, as always.
Read the full story about the Walker's here and here.
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Twins with Sickle Cell Get Once-in-a-Lifetime Chance to Participate in the Rio Olympics
August 10, 2016 by AndreaCategory: Sickle Cell Disease Tags: J'Son and J'Kerria Walker, Rio Olympics, sickle cell, sickle cell at the Olympics | Comments Off on Twins with Sickle Cell Get Once-in-a-Lifetime Chance to Participate in the Rio Olympics
