Hemophilia wasn't something any of us had ever really thought about until 2018 when our then 8-year-old son had suffered from a serious mouth bleed that ended him in the hospital needing a blood transfusion. 

The frustrating part was that this had happened to him numerous times. He bit his mouth open and when we went to the ER, we were sent home after a cursory check. The ER docs always said that it just LOOKED like a lot of blood because it was mixing with saliva.

In 2018, he had oral surgery which turned into a massive abscess. This needed to be drained and after the oral surgeon kept him for observation let us know that we should bring him to his doctor ASAP. We went to his pediatrician who told us to go to the ER immediately for a blood transfusion. WHOA! That escalated quickly!

Everything made sense after that. The huge bruise he had on his arm a few years earlier. The many mouth bleeds he had. The strangely swollen and floating kneecap.

What we've learned in this process is that there's a serious lack of awareness of bleeding disorders even within the medical community.

There's also a lack of knowledge in the general population. Because bleeding disorders are so rare, we as laymen tend to learn about them from rumors. Many people think hemophilia means that if a hemophiliac gets a scratch, they have to go to the ER immediately. And that's what they'd be looking out for. So there's no way we thought our son was having clotting issues.

As you see above, things are much more subtle. This community has been through decades of pain, neglect, discrimination and heart-break (absolutely not overexaggerating here).

It wasn't until 2021 that we learned about the NYC Hemophilia Chapter and joined the UNITE for Bleeding Disorders Walk. It was here that we realized we weren't alone. We had been white knuckling things for the 3 years prior and we didn't need to. 

We walk with the Chapter to raise awareness in the general population so that no one has to go through these experiences again. 

We also walk to create a strong community in the NYC area so that anyone who finds themselves in similar shoes never feels alone.

We walk to fund the Chapter that enables advocacy, law changes and community in the greatest city on Earth, New York City. 

Here's how you can help:

• Donate: Contribute whatever you can. Every dollar counts!
• Spread the Word: Share our fundraising page with your friends, family, and social networks. Let’s spread awareness so we can raise more!

Thank you so much for your support! We couldn’t do this without you!