Mother of Seriously Ill Teen Seeks 50,000 Greeting Cards From Around The World, Appeals to Community for Help
Posted on: Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 12:00 CST
ELMIRA, N.Y., March 15 /PRNewswire/ -- An Elmira, New York mother of a teenager suffering from congenital toxoplasmosis, a potentially fatal disease, has started a drive to collect 50,000 greeting cards from around the world for her son, sixteen-year-old Shawn Kenny.
Toxoplasmosis is a potentially fatal disease that affects individuals who have come in contact with a parasite called Toxoplasma Gondii. The disease can be contracted by handling the feces or contaminated meat of cats, dogs, cows, pigs, chicken, horses, and sheep. Individuals lacking the proper antibodies are at risk of contracting this rare disease. Pregnant women are particularly susceptible.
Shawn is believed to have contracted this disease in utero, when his mother was 4 to 6 weeks pregnant and likely exposed to the parasite while working on a dairy farm. Symptoms manifested shortly after his birth.
Shawn's case is extremely rare, but he has suffered the worst manifestations of this disease, and his prognosis is fatal. His mother, Pammie Penfield, a single mother of three, began the card drive to encourage his will power and lift his spirits.
Over the last year, Pammie has turned to online communities for support. She has received a few thousand cards already, many of which came from friends she has met on Paltalk, a voice and video chat service. Pammie holds regular musical concerts on Paltalk with hundreds of supporters attending each show. She has also shared Shawn's story with the MySpace.com community and thousands of people have chosen to link to Shawn's page.
Cards for Shawn may be sent to the following addresses: Shawn Kenny c/o Pammie Penfield Po Box 4088 Elmira, NY 14904
Paltalk
CONTACT: Laura Galloway, +1-213-948-3100
Web site: http://www.paltalk.com/
Source: PRNewswire
Related Articles
- Mike Danko, Attorney, and Susan Crane, Mother of Victim, to Testify at California Assembly on Dangers of Old Tires
- New Toast to Women Website to Raise $100,000 for Women With Heart Disease
- PhotoWorks and American Greetings Announce Exclusive Mother's Day Photo Book and Greeting Card Designs
- Chinese Baby Dies of Viral Disease
- Zebrafish and CHIP help untangle protein misfolding in brain disease
- Theory: Mad Cow Disease May Have Come From Humans
- Prevention and Control of Meningococcal Disease: Recommendations for Use of Meningococcal Vaccines in Pediatric Patients
- Racial/Ethnic and Socioeconomic Disparities in Multiple Risk Factors for Heart Disease and Stroke - United States, 2003
- Basketball Star Alonzo Mourning Reaches Out to Fellow Kidney Disease Patients With New Series of Online Greeting Cards
- 20-Minute Test 'to Reveal Heart Disease Years Early'
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds