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Spirit of yellow bracelets

The News Sun – Waukegan (IL) October 24, 2005 | Dan Moran Kim Barrett, co-owner of Once Upon a Child store in Round Lake Beach, smiles as Baylie Owen, 6, latches on to her during a public appearance. Jeanette Gitskin, (left) and sister Kara Gitskin, both 13, of Mundelein look through a variety of bracelets made by Baylie Owen and her family. The owners of Once Upon a Child in Round Lake Beach have been selling bracelets made by Baylie Owen and her family in hopes of raising money for a brain condition affecting Baylie.

ROUND LAKE BEACH — In the spirit of the yellow bracelets seen far and wide to benefit Lance Armstrong’s cancer research foundation, a bracelet campaign is being conducted this fall by the Once Upon a Child store on Rollins Road to aid a Texas girl battling a rare neurological disorder. Six-year-old Baylie Owen, who was diagnosed in February 2000 with Chiari malformation, was scheduled to visit the store this weekend during a stop in Chicago for treatment. go to web site arnold chiari malformation

“We live in a big city, but we have to travel to Chicago for help,” said Baylie’s mother, Tressie Owen of Houston, in a statement released prior to the visit. “We hope by selling these bracelets, we’ll raise more awareness about Chiari.

“It’s important that people understand that we have kids that are in horrible pain from this.” Chiari malformation, also referred to as Arnold-Chiari malformation, is described as a rare and cureless condition in which the cerebellum protrudes into the spinal column, causing such complications as impaired motor skills and symptoms that include headaches and vomiting. site arnold chiari malformation

Following Baylie’s diagnosis, the Owen family came to be treated in Illinois after after participating in a support group for Chiari malformation and learning about pediatric neurosurgery program at the University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital.

The only treatment for the condition is surgery to repair the protrusions against the spinal cord, and Baylie has already endured four procedures, the first when she was 13 months old. The surgeries can lessen the severity of symptoms, and Baylie lives with a shunt in her head to relieve pressure on the brain.

The bracelets reportedly were Baylie’s idea to raise awareness of the condition and also funds for the University of Chicago Pediatric Neurosurgery Research and Education Fund. To date, sales of the handmade bracelets have raised some $3,000.

Each bracelet is handmade with glass and plastic beads in different shades of blue. According to Baylie’s Web site, www.baylieforbrains.com, blue was chosen because she was born on the day of a blue moon, and her middle name is Belewe.

The cost of the bracelets is $5. They were originally available for sale on the Web site, but Don Burke of Northbrook, who owns the Once Upon a Child franchise in Round Lake Beach and five other Chicago suburbs, said he offered to make the bracelets available in his stores after reading about her situation.

According to Burke, an initial order of 200 bracelets was nearly sold out through mid-October, and a second order was 200 has been placed. Baylie was scheduled to bring a new supply to Round Lake Beach Saturday afternoon, and also to the Gurnee Wal-Mart in the morning.

Each bracelet sold comes with a thank-you poem written by Baylie and her family:

Thank you for your donation that will help fund research for Chiari malformation My hope is that every time you look at your wrist, that you will put me and my friends on your prayer list.

We have something wrong with our brains, and so we are always in pain.

So until our doctor finds a cure, many surgeries we will have to endure.

Dan Moran