Beekman firefighters raise money to aid girl

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Sunday, August 19, 2007

Beekman firefighters raise money to aid girl

Event to help pay for medical costs

By Michael Woyton

Poughkeepsie Journal

POUGHQUAG - Victoria Burke loves going to school and loves going out.

For most outgoing, 5-year-olds that might be a simple enough task, but Victoria doing either of those is a challenge.

She has an extremely severe case of epilepsy that causes seizures every day.

But a group of Beekman firefighters is pulling together to help raise money for an experimental surgery.

"A lot of people live with epilepsy every day," Nora Burke, Victoria's mother, said. "Some people are fortunate to have medication that stops the seizures."

Medications don't work for Victoria, Burke said. Her daughter cannot walk or talk and barely is able to sit on her own.

"We have done everything medically possible that insurance covers," she said, adding Victoria is on four different medications right now.

The various medications she has been on work at first, but then lose effectiveness, Burke said.

"Everything has a honeymoon period," she said, "but then it's like hitting a dead end."

Seeking other treatments

Those dead ends have led her family to look for treatments elsewhere.

In the Dominican Republic, doctors are using injections of stem cells, derived from embryos that develop from fertilized eggs, to some success in treating the disorder.

In the United States, such treatments are controversial, as is any research involving embryonic stem cells. Those who oppose the research do so because it destroys the embryos in the process.

Stem cells are immature cells that have the ability to grow into any one of the body's cell types. There are two types - embryonic and adult.

Results from the treatment, Burke said, can be seen as soon as two weeks.

It costs $25,000 for the first treatment. Subsequent injections, taken every six months, cost $8,500.

That's where the Beekman Fire Department comes in.

Burke asked her friend, Asst. Fire Chief Heather Cooper, if the firefighters could hold a raffle to raise some money to offset the costs.

"It took off from there," Cooper said.

So far, the department has raised $6,000, after paying for an all-terrain vehicle which is being raffled.

Cooper said they've also raffled off firefighters to do tasks around people's homes - like mowing lawns or washing cars - and are planning a dinner dance in the fall.

"When you look at little Victoria, you just can't resist," she said.

Burke knows people have strong opinions on the use of stem cells.

"I know it's highly controversial," she said, "but if it helps one more person, I'm happy about that.

"I'm just a parent who wants to help her daughter in any way she can," Burke said.

Reach Michael Woyton at mwoyton@poughkeepsiejournal.com or 845-451-4518.

The Beekman Fire Department is helping raise funds for Victoria Burke. Checks can be made out to Beekman Fire Department for Victoria Burke and mailed to: P.O. Box 247, Poughquag, NY 12570.

Green's Auto Repair Inc. will donate $100 toward Victoria's treatment for every vehicle donated. Call 845-724-5362 and say, "I have a car for Victoria."

Tickets for the ATV raffle can be purchased by calling Heather Cooper, 845-656-8566.

http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/apps/pb...339/1006/NEWS01