Senior Uses Football to Raise Awareness for Cystic Fibrosis

Stephany Speck, OKBlitz.com Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Football players play for pride and victories for their teams each Friday night, but a Putnam City North student found a way to utilize that same passion to bring awareness to a special cause.

Senior Kellie Benson first became aware of Cystic Fibrosis after joining a Facebook group dedicated to raising awareness of the disease.

"I really didn't know anything about Cystic Fibrosis before this," Benson said.

Cystic Fibrosis is diagnosed about 1,000 times each year, mostly striking children under the age of two. It's an inherited disease which clogs the lungs, leading to life-threatening respiratory infections along with digestive problems, prohibiting a person from absorbing nutrients through food.

Benson found a link on the group's wall, telling the story of 7-year-old Capri, who battles the disease every day. Capri takes more than 50 pills a day, two breathing treatments and has recently had to move away from her friends and family to participate in a trial treatment.

Read more at OKBlitz.com.