Inside Deacon Hockey With Bronwen Gainsford
10/5/2011 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
Previous Entries: Aug. 31 | Sept. 7 | Sept. 14 | Sept. 20 | Sept. 28
Oct. 5, 2011
This past weekend, we were finally home. Aside from the great feeling of playing on our own turf, one of the great advantages to having a home game is the ability to be involved in things that we usually would not have the chance to be involved in if we were on the road. One of these activities is volunteering.
On Saturday at 8:30 a.m., a group of members from the Forsyth County community met at Tanglewood Park to take part in 5K Race for Victor. Some of those people included local children and adults, professors and students from Wake Forest University, and of course a couple of members of our team. The Race for Victor was a 5K walk/run to raise money for the research of Pitt Hopkins Syndrome.
Pitt Hopkins Syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects the development of the nervous system and the brain. Originally when the Syndrome was diagnosed, people believed that the children would be unable to walk, speak or relate to other people. Dr. Paul Pauca, a Wake Forest Professor, and his wife, alongside with the Routledge family, have created a support group for parents who have children with Pitt Hopkins Syndrome. The group originally began with only three members and now has over 130 families. Through the group, Dr. Pauca has created a foundation to fund research for Pitt Hopkins Syndrome. Currently, there not a lot of research on the disease, and the research that does exists focuses on extreme cases of Pitt Hopkins Syndrome.
Our hockey team has come to know Victor through his participation in Weed Whackers, a program run by Wake Hockey to teach young children how to play field hockey. Through getting to know Victor and his family, we thought it would be a great opportunity to support them, like they support us. Here are a couple of pictures from the event. Also, if you would like to learn more about Pitt Hopkins Syndrome, visit www.pitthopkins.org/.
Tyra Clemmenson, Bronwen Gainsford, Kari Walkley, Dr. Paul Pauca, Jess McFadyen
Tyra Clemmenson, who won the 5k race
