Riley Gonzales raises arthritis awareness

MOSES LAKE - Walk up to 6-year-old Riley Gonzales and he will likely greet you with a huge smile and perhaps a gentle hug.

According to Riley's mom Brooke Gonzales, the kindergartner has one of the sweetest personalities in his family.

You would never know that he suffers from juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease he was born with, she said.

Unless Riley asks for ice packs to soothe inflammation in his joints, Gonzales said he doesn't complain about his arthritis or let it keep him from enjoying his childhood.

"He's a typical six-year-old," she said. "He loves to play with his brother, and loves to get outside and do anything and everything."

Riley's list of favorite activities include spending time with his 2-year-old brother Ryder, going to school with other kids and playing with airplanes. Gonzales said Riley is also starting to show an interest in wanting to play sports like football and soccer.

Gonzales said she and husband James have always been careful to protect Riley from injuries or sickness, but they weren't going to keep him from doing the things he wants to.

"We're not going to stop him from doing what he loves," she said.

Riley was born with arthritis, a condition that people typically associate with older adults. But Gonzales said that nearly one in every 300,000 kids have arthritis.

Nearly 60,000 kids in Washington state have some form of arthritis, she said.

"This is the first time in Moses Lake that people are seeing a little kid with arthritis," Gonzales said. "Since we found out that Riley had it, we want to make it a big deal and try to raise awareness."

Seeing what Riley has gone through because of his arthritis made Gonzales want to raise awareness for children with arthritis.

"Let's get arthritis out there," she said. "It's sad to see and hear about a kid that has to go through something like this."

Gonzales said that Riley has always been excited to help share his story and raise awareness about his arthritis. Along with his family, Riley participated in several arthritis walks around Washington state during the past few years.

This past April, Riley visited Washington D.C. to share his story and meet other children and adults who also had arthritis.

However, Gonzales said that recently, Riley has been more determined to raise awareness.

About a month ago, the Gonzales family found out that Riley also had osteopenia, a disease that deteriorates the bones similar to osteoporosis.

"It was hard to hear that," she said. "You don't want to hear that your kid has something else on top of what he already has."

But Gonzales said that Riley is still a very positive kid, and wants to keep participating in events that highlight arthritis.

Gonzales said her family serves as ambassadors for the Arthritis Foundation, and she has been trying to talk with local legislators to gain support for a bill regarding patient access to treatment. She said the bill will help people with pre-exisiting conditions obtain access to low or no cost medications.

Medications are often expensive, and in Riley's case, treatment also includes transportation costs that the family must pay in order to make out of town visits to specialists, she said. Lower cost medications could help families who face similar challenges.

They are also preparing for the 2012 Spokane Jingle Bell Walk/Run on Dec. 1, which raises money for the Arthritis Foundation.

Gonzales said this will be the family's fourth trip to Spokane to participate in the event. Last year, Riley was the event's honoree, she said.

"We got to tell his story and we're trying to make it an annual event for our family," Gonzales said.

She said she wants to invite the Moses Lake community to participate in the event with Team Riley or to donate to the Arthritis Foundation. Participants can walk the 1k portion of the event, or run the 5k, said Gonzales.

"This is a great way to raise money for arthritis," she said. "You hear about the cancer walks and the autism walks but arthritis isn't a big thing, and we want to try to raise awareness for arthritis."

She said it's important to get funding for the Arthritis Foundation.

Gonzales said in addition to Riley, her sister, mother and grandparents all have arthritis.

"They told us it wasn't genetic, but I don't believe that," she said. "That's why we need funds for the foundation to get more research on arthritis."

For more information about the Jingle Bell event, visit www.spokanejinglebellrun.kintera.org and search for Team Riley.