The fourth annual fundraiser for Ava’s Magical Unicorns to support efforts to fight and cure cystic fibrosis will be held at the Fraternal Order of Eagles, Paint Aerie 1325 in Greenfield on, Saturday, June 18 from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The fundraiser will include a car show, poker run, auctions, games, food trucks, vendors, Disney characters and other attractions.
Ava’s Magical Unicorns is a charitable organization inspired by Ava Everhart, an 11-year-old fifth grader at Greenfield Elementary School who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when she was only three weeks old. The name comes from Everhart’s adoration for unicorns.
Cystic fibrosis is a progressive life-threatening genetic disease that causes persistent lung infections and limits the ability to breathe over time. It primarily affects the lungs and digestive system but can impact all of the body’s organs. An estimated 30,000 children and adults in the U.S. have cystic fibrosis.
Ava is the daughter of Jeff and Mindy Everhart. Mindy said she’s been told that Ava’s life expectancy is 30 to 35 years, but the technology for treating the disease continues to improve. During the 1950s, a child with cystic fibrosis rarely lived long enough to attend elementary school.
An announcement for the fundraiser details the difficulties Everhart faces during her daily routine. In order to help clear the mucus from her lungs, she must undergo treatments and has to take medication every day.
She takes enzyme pills every time she eats to break down food and absorb nutrients. Two different inhalers are used to keep her lungs clear, and she uses a vest machine twice a day to loosen any mucus that might be stuck.
A nebulizer is used to help Everhart inhale a special medicine called Pulmozyme. Other medicines she takes include multivitamins and pills to increase her appetite. In all, Ava is required to take nearly 100 pills a day.
“I dream of a day when I don’t have to do all these treatments,” Everhart said in the fundraiser’s new release. “My parents and doctors tell me we are getting really close. I want to grow older and hope to be a veterinarian someday because I love animals.”
Jean Little is a kindergarten teacher at Greenfield Elementary School who serves as the manager and coordinator of Ava’s Magical Unicorns. According to Little, Everhart was reading and completing sixthgrade assignments at the age of seven.
“How do you look at her with so many dreams, aspirations, and talents and tell her that she has a limited time in this world because ther’s just not enough research at this time to help her,” Little said.
Little is working to reach a goal of raising $10,000 each year through benefits. The organization has come close to the goal in previous years but has fallen short so far.
Little is soliciting local businesses to donate $50 to have their logo applied to the back of newly designed t-shirts that will be sold at the fundraiser.
For information about Ava and the event, visit her Facebook page at Ava’s Magical Unicorns@cureforCF.
Reach John Hackley at 937-402-2571.
