By Maddy Vitale
Emily Kropp was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disease, when she was just a child. More than 30 years later, she still fights the ailment, which is under control at the moment.
Instead of concentrating on her own struggles, Kropp, of Philadelphia, helps others by raising funds for research in hopes of finding a cure.
Over the last nine years she and her team, “Team Tummy,” have raised $32,000 through the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, and that number keeps growing.
On Sunday morning, Kropp, the 2018 “Honored Hero” for the foundation, gave opening remarks at the 24th annual Guts and Glory 5K Run-Walk in Ocean City benefiting the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.
“This is a very special day for me,” Kropp, 40, who summers in Ocean City, shouted into the microphone. “I look forward to this day. It shows how a small community comes together.”
The event serves as a fundraiser for the charity and is also a meeting place for people to connect with others suffering from irritable bowel disorders, according to the CACF.
Before the start of the race, Carly Presnell, development director for the foundation, addressed the crowd.
“You are our heroes. You are the reason we gathered here today. You all empower, inspire, connect us to our mission to raise funds for a cure,” Presnell said to applause “We admire your strength and perseverance.”
Hundreds of runners and walkers lined up at the intersection of Haven Avenue and 18th Street for the start the race wearing team shirts that read: “Jogging Josh,” “Team Tummy” and “Got Guts.”
Kropp and her best friend, Megan Fant, walked side by side.
Kropp was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease at the age of eight and has had her battles with the uncomfortable, sometimes debilitating disease.
Medicine, she said, keeps it under control. Her disease is considered stable, but she suffers from flareups.
“I feel very lucky I have had such wonderful healthcare,” Kropp said.
Kropp may have grown weary from going to doctors throughout her life, but it is also how she found her calling, she said.
She is a nurse in the oncology department at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOPS).
“I was exposed to a lot of nurses as a kid, and it sounds cliché, but it is the silver lining in all of this,” Kropp said. “I found my passion.”
Kropp’s friend Fant said one of the things that makes Kropp so special is that through all of the health struggles, she never complains.
“She is such an inspiration,” Fant said, while walking with Kropp for “Team Tummy.”
Rhondell Domilici, director of advancement and volunteer engagement for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, said there are between 1.6 million and 3.1 million patients suffering from irritable bowel disease nationwide.
“A lot of people suffer in silence,” Domilici said.
She was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease when she was 12. Like Kropp, Domilici credited advancements in medicine to help her manage the disease.
But there is a lot more that could be learned about the disease, which would help to hopefully find a cure, she added.
“There is a plethora of medications and new options,” Domilici said. “Other than finding a cure, we are hoping to be able to personalize the treatment approaches with a couple of lab tests rather than patients trying different drugs to see if they work.”
Domilici said medical experts have found a correlation between Crohn’s disease and genetics. Stress, diet and viruses are also the culprits in the ailment that is most prevalent in the United States, Canada and Europe.
Paul Gellar, director of the Philadelphia/Delaware Valley Chapter of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, said roughly 90,000 people suffer from the disease throughout the region.
“The growth is incredible,” Gellar noted of the disease diagnosis being on the rise in the area.
Some people didn’t participate in the event but were there to support their loved ones who did.
Allison Spiro, of Red Bank, and Emma Johnson, of Hopewell Township in Mercer County, watched as their friend ran in support of a friend’s daughter who has Crohn’s disease.
“We are here to show our support,” Spiro said. “Everyone knows someone with the disease.”
For more information or to donate visit the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation at www.CCFA.org.
