A sudden, severe asthma attack took this young life.
Kellen Edwin Bolden was only 10 years old — a bright, energetic young boy from Jonesboro, Georgia. Kellen had severe life-threatening asthma which had required extensive care. Despite the unpredictable nature of Kellen’s asthma, he maintained a remarkable spirit and an almost amazing ability to recover from the most severe of asthma flare-ups. He would always tell the doctors and nurses, “You know I am going to be alright” in between gasping breaths. He would remind them that they promised to get him ice cream as soon as his breathing got better.
Despite multiple changes in treatment and countless specialists involved in his care, one day we lost Kellen.
Sadly, more than 10 deaths from asthma happen every day across the country. It is crucial for people to recognize “what is asthma” and understand that it can be a serious and life-threatening condition. Many asthma deaths are avoidable with proper treatment and care.
Another sad reality is that asthma disproportionately affects people of color. This is because adults and children from those communities are challenged by social and economic factors that make access to care especially hard.
You can change this reality with a gift to Allergy & Asthma Network. Your donation can truly make a difference for those suffering due to allergies, asthma and related conditions and who are in desperately need of help, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their asthma in particular makes them more at risk of serious complications if diagnosed with the virus.
This year, Allergy & Asthma Network responded to this urgent need through the Not One More Life: Trusted Messengers program. Not One More Life was created in memory of young Kellen.
Trusted Messengers partners with faith-based organizations, community leaders, volunteers and healthcare professionals to offer free asthma/COPD screenings, COVID testing, education and telehealth coaches in communities in need. This year we hosted three screening events at churches in Atlanta, near where Kellen lived, and where the prevalence of asthma is high. We served hundreds of families who normally don’t have access. We know our Not One More Life: Trusted Messengers program makes a difference in people’s life and health.
You can help save lives with a donation to Allergy & Asthma Network. Our goal is to expand the Trusted Messengers program to five other cities and reach thousands more people in 2021.
Your gift to our Not One More Life Fund will:
- Offer free asthma/COPD and allergy screening and education events
- Purchase spirometers and mouth pieces to conduct screenings
- Purchase PPE, cleaning supplies and food vouchers for families in need
- Offer telehealth access and health coach visits free of charge
- Teach children proper inhaler use
- Distribute free educational material about allergies, asthma and related conditions
- Offer a toll-free helpline (English/Spanish)
In the weeks ahead, you’ll hear more about Kellen’s life from the people who knew him and treated him. Not One More Life is the legacy of Kellen, his strength and that of the family and community that supported him…and us. Not One More Life is the testimony and conviction that one day, not one more life will be lost to asthma.
Your gift to Allergy & Asthma Network will truly make a difference. Saving lives will only be possible through a partnership with you and other patients, families, communities of faith …and that still small voice of Kellen that we all still hear.
Please give generously.
Warm regards,
Tonya Winders
President/CEO
P.S. You can make your donation securely online, or you can donate by phone or mail. Call us at 800-878-4403.
810304 Eaton Place, Suite 100