“More than the best”: Frasier’s first JAR event at Inflatacity

Our incredible volunteer Selma, joined the team last year and quickly got stuck into helping Juvenile Arthritis Research in so many ways. One of her volunteering roles is organising events in her region. She brilliantly organised an event at Inflatacity in November. 

Here she writes about what it meant to her and her family: 

My son, Frasier, was diagnosed with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) in August 2024. Frasier was just 4 years old at the time and the diagnosis hit us all hard. I was lucky enough to find Juvenile Arthritis Research (JAR) early on in our journey and received amazing support through their Facebook group and Parent Zoom meetings, but not knowing any other children with arthritis was making Frasier feel so alone. I can’t tell you how happy he was then to have the chance to attend an in-person JAR event! As he excitedly got ready to go, proudly putting on his JAR top, he told me that if he had to choose between Christmas and the “JAR party” he would pick the party! Frasier LOVES Christmas so that gives you some idea of how much it meant to him to meet other JIA warriors!

When we arrived at Inflatacity we were so happy to see so many families had come along to join the fun, completely undeterred by it being a dark, wintery school night! Some of the children were a little nervous and unsure on arrival, but the minute the inflatables opened they all rushed off together, laughing and joking. It was wonderful to see them all working together to get round the assault course, supporting and encouraging each other along the way. 

Whilst the children squealed with delight, us adults enjoyed some rare time sharing experiences with others who know the difficulties of JIA all too well. The time together was just as important for us parents as it was for the children; it was so nice to be able to speak to others who just get it, and to hear from those who have been navigating the challenges of JIA far longer than us. 

After an hour of bouncing fun it was time for dinner in the on-site cafe. Children who had stood apart on arrival, snuggled close to their parents, now all sat together, giggling and chatting away like old friends whilst they enjoyed their meal. It was clear how much it meant to the children to find others like them and to have a positive experience associated with JIA. 

The evening ended all too quickly, with everyone wishing it could last longer and already talking about meeting up again soon. When I asked Frasier what he had thought of the event he told me; “It was really, really more than the best, even more than that, I loved it!” Thank you Juvenile Arthritis Research for helping our JIA warriors feel less alone and for supporting us all on this journey, we would be lost without you. 

Keep an eye out on our social media channels and e-newsletter for details of future events. 

Read more about previous events here. 

We can only run events in regions where we have volunteers to seek regional funding and then make it happen using their organisational skills. Those factors determine where we run events so please bear that in mind when asking us to run an event in your area. If you want to see it happen, then you can apply to join our volunteer team and make it happen!