Last year, the Peachtree City Running Club launched the All American 5K, a race on the Saturday before Memorial Day that raised money for the Dan Berschinski Fund. Lt. Dan Berschinski is a local man who was injured in Afghanistan. The race this year, set for Saturday, May 28, will be run in honor of
Ashley Kurpiel, a Peachtree City resident with Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva (FOP). Money raised from the $25 entry fee for runners, walkers and phantom runners will support the International FOP Association (IFOPA).
Kurpiel, who is very active with the IFOPA, had always wanted to do a fundraising race with the Peachtree City Running Club. She was put in touch with race director Carolyn Gulick and the idea for Kurpiel to be this year’s hometown hero blossomed.
“The Peachtree City Running Club is proud to raise funds for research for FOP in honor of Ashley,” said Gulick. “This disease is so rare that there is very little funding for research, so every dollar can make a difference in the lives of those who are afflicted with FOP.”
Kurpiel added that five years ago doctors discovered the gene that causes FOP and that money raised now will fund the work and research being done to discover a cure.
In October of 2009, while speaking at a rare bone disease conference in Washington, D.C., she visited Berschinski when he was at Walter Reed. When Kurpiel was selected as the honoree for this year’s race, the Friends of Dan Berschinski were among the first sponsors. Sponsorships are important for the All-American 5K because they cover the cost of putting on the event, allowing all of the money raised from entry fees to go directly to the organization they are raising funds for. Gulick stated that they are hoping to have 400 runners in this year’s race and raise $10,000 for the IFOPA.
Kurpiel, a graduate of Starr’s Mill High School’s first graduating class in 2000, has been suffering from FOP since the age of three. She was originally misdiagnosed with cancer and this resulted in the amputation of her right arm and shoulder. FOP is a rare disease in which inflammation causes the body’s soft tissues to turn to bone, slowly trapping victims in a second skeleton. At the present, Ashley can’t move her left arm and has very little neck movement, no lower back movement and has lost mobility in her right leg.
The disease may slow her down, but not much. She frequently travels to attend and speak at other FOP events, as well as events that discuss living with amputations.
She is also a frequent sight on the cart paths in Peachtree City and got her first taste of being civically minded when she approached then Governor Sonny Perdue about a piece of legislation that would have made it illegal for someone without a driver’s license to operate a golf cart. A golf cart is Kurpiel’s main mode of transportation and she made sure that the Governor knew that many others relied heavily on their golf carts as well.
When Kurpiel was diagnosed with FOP, close to Memorial Day when she was three years old, the doctors said that the disease was advancing so rapidly she would likely not live much past her 10th birthday. She is now 30 and staying involved with the groups that are striving to find a cure.
“There will be a domino effect when they find a cure,” Kurpiel said, adding that it would be able to help people dealing with osteoporosis and other bone diseases. She stated that there may be clinical trials in her future and she is hopeful about what could mean. For her, it could mean not having the disease advancing any further. For others, it could mean never having to see a child with their jaw fused shut because of FOP.
“Ashley’s spirit and dedication to raising awareness of FOP is an inspiration to all who meet her, “ said Gulick. “She is truly a hometown hero and deserves to be honored.”
Kurpiel is looking forward to this year’s race and knows that many of the friends she has made in the FOP and amputee communities are coming to be a part of this year’s event.
The All American 5K is currently seeking sponsors at all levels. Platinum ($1,000), Gold ($500), Silver ($250) and Bronze ($100). The course is the same at last year and will start at the Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater. There will be awards presented to the overall male and female winners and the top three men and women in each age group. All participants receive a race t-shirt.
Applications for runners, walkers and phantom runners are available at www.ptcrc.com and www.active.com.
