Oli’s Outstanding Outreach: Driffield Duo raise over £3,000 for Juvenile Arthritis Research

When Clare and Oli got in touch a few months ago to say they were planning to do a fundraiser at their local rugby club, neither we nor they realised just what an impact they would make in their community and beyond. 

Oli has been playing rugby for many years. It is his favourite sport and his whole life revolves around rugby. When diagnosed with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) last year, he found himself unable to play. It felt like life had come to a standstill - an enormous setback in the life of a young person. Instead of dwelling on it, he and his mum Clare decided to "turn a negative into a positive" and help to raise as much awareness as they could about JIA as well as organising a fundraising event to raise funds for the work we do in making life better for those with JIA. 

Clare said "to go from playing rugby daily to being unable to walk was sudden and frightening, but we have been very lucky with support from the NHS and Juvenile Arthritis Research." Clare told us that she didn't even know that children and young people could get arthritis when Oli was diagnosed and so it has become really important to her to help raise awareness of JIA.

Oli worked hard on his recovery with his rheumatology team and a week before the fundraising event, Oli was able to take part in a training session at his rugby club - Driffield - for the first time in a year. 

The big day

Saturday 8th March was the big day itself with some incredible events and activities arranged by Oli and Clare. "Our club have been incredible at supporting Oli and his return back to playing!" explains Clare. The total raised by Oli, Clare and Driffield RUFC came to a phenomenal £3,461.90, this makes Oli not just one of the top fundraisers of the year for Juvenile Arthritis Research but one of our top fundraisers ever! 

Making a difference

Here at Juvenile Arthritis Research, one of our core aims is raising awareness because we know that low awareness is a leading cause of delays in diagnosis and treatment. When there are delays in diagnosis due to a lack of awareness, children and young people are at risk of long term joint damage as well as a risk of damage to their eyesight from JIA-related uveitis. That's why awareness is so vitally important. 

Our research has shown that amongst the general population, awareness of childhood arthritis is low. Overall, fewer than one in five people knew that children under the age of 5 years old can get arthritis. In addition, misconceptions about arthritis are common, such as 'arthritis can be cured', ‘blood tests can always confirm a diagnosis of arthritis’ and ‘X-rays can always confirm a diagnosis of arthritis’. It is important to raise awareness that there is currently no cure for JIA, and that tests and X-rays cannot confirm a diagnosis of JIA - there is no single test that can diagnose JIA, so it is important for GPs as well as the general public to be aware of this to avoid delays in diagnosis and treatment for anyone who may be showing signs and symptoms of JIA (more information on the signs and symptoms of JIA can be found on our #ThinkJIA awareness site at www.thinkjia.org)   

Everything that Oli and Clare have been doing is helping to make a difference to community awareness levels in their local community. Oli even wrote to his local MP, Charlie Dewhirst (Member of Parliament for Bridlington & the Wolds) further helping to raise awareness. 

Oli's JIA story and fundraising efforts have been recognised in the local press with articles in the Driffield & Wolds Weekly. 

Thank you Oli!

"What Oli has achieved together with his family and friends and the wonderful support of his rugby club, is fantastic. The fundraising will go a long way is supporting the work we do in helping families affected by a diagnosis of JIA as well as helping to progress research towards a cure for JIA which is something we are passionate about." Richard Beesley, founder of Juvenile Arthritis Research explained. Continuing "Oli should be incredibly proud of all he has achieved. He is an inspirational young person who has shown that amazing things are possible with a positive attitude. We are very grateful for everything that Oli and Clare are doing."

It's been great to hear that Oli is back training and playing rugby again. We can't wait to see what the future has in store for Oli both on and off the pitch as Oli's adventures continue! 

You can follow Oli on Tiktok

https://www.tiktok.com/@olisjiaadventure

and Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/olisjiaadventure

 If you've been inspired by Oli and Clare's fundraising and want to make life better for those with JIA by supporting our work, you can request a fundraising pack at www.jarproject.org/fundraising