DETROIT – Hundreds gathered at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History for the annual Sickle Cell Matters Walk.
Sickle Cell Association of America Michigan Chapter puts the event on every year. The mission is to bring awareness, educate and instill hope in the community.
During the event, people connected with health vendors set up in the street including clinics, nonprofits, and resources. After the walk, participants honored their loved ones who died from sickle cell disease inside the museum.
From little ones to seniors, people who live with sickle cell refer to themselves as a sickle cell warrior because of what they’re up against. Sickle cell is a genetic blood disease that effects the red blood cells.
“So what it does is it carries less amount of oxygen that goes through the blood vessels and from that, that creates the issue where the blood vessels are stopped, sharp pains happen, strokes can happen because of that,” said Clifton Kirkman II, a sickle cell warrior and advocate.
The annual walk means something different to each participant. For Kirkman, it’s a reminder of how strong sickle cell warriors really are.
“So many people, when you hear sickle cell, you think negative and us as sickle cell warriors we just live each day like we know how to live yes we have hospital stays, it’s what we do between the time, we don’t allow us it to stop us,” Kirkman said.
For Dr. Wanda Whitten-Shurney, CEO and medical director of Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Michigan Chapter, the event reflects the progress treatment has made over the years.
“There are lots of people living well with sickle cell disease and there are people with gray hair that live with sickle cell disease, so we want to dispel some of those myths and we just want people to be aware of the fact that this is a very challenging patient population we’re trying to serve,” Whitten-Shurney said.
For the family of eight-year-old Zuri Carter, the Sickle Cell Matters Walk is a moment to make a statement.
“From the hospital visits to her (Carter) pain, her just not understanding what she’s going through when she has the pains, so her fight is our fight,” said Deontae Jenkins. “We try our best so that she’s getting the full information she needs to know why she’s going through what she’s going through.”
Carter’s father Rashawn Carter, said, “Like the shirt says it takes a village so we’re all here supporting little Z and everybody else. It’s a good turnout and like he mentioned her pain is our pain and we’re all in this together.”
The event raised more than $125,000 for Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Michigan Chapter.