I’ll be honest – I am not a huge baseball fan.  It is too slow-paced for me.  I just can’t seem to get into it.  Yet, once a year I make the trip down to Pittsburgh for a Pirates game to help raise funds and awareness for F.I.R.S.T. (Foundation for Ichthyosis & Related Skin Types).  It is one of the highlights of my year.  The Kocher family puts it on and their son Calvin who has Ichthyosis like me is so precious.  It has been fun to watch him grow through the years (he is now three and a half).  Last year was the first time that Calvin began to realize that his skin is different than others and the look on his face when he saw that my skin was the same was priceless.  Then, I get to hang out with Emma.  I met Emma last year at the tailgate and she was so shy, but by the time we got into the game she sat next to me and talked my ear off!  She really looks up to me and I am honored to be able to be a source of inspiration to her.  This year, I met two new faces.  Amy is a lady in her 40s who had never met anyone else with skin like her until this baseball game.  She was so eager to ask me lots of questions and get my advice.  We became fast friends.  Then there is Anthony.  He and I had been friends on Facebook for a while so it was a joy to finally meet.  He is a youth pastor near Pittsburgh and he and his wife have a heart for mission work in foreign countries so we had a lot in common.  It was extremely uplifting to talk to someone my age who understands what I go through on a daily basis.  Now, if only we could just turn this event into a football game and it’d be perfect!

Emma

Amy

Mom & I with the Kocher Family (Calvin, Lauren, Matt)

Anthony