News

We are excited to announce that our longtime “Champion for Kids” partner, Mardon Insurance, now part of Westland Insurance Group has donated an incredible $10,000 to Team Cassie and Friends in the Scotiabank Charity Challenge. This generous donation will go directly towards transforming the lives of kids and families affected by…

In the final stretch to race day with Team Cassie and Friends in the Scotiabank Vancouver Half Marathon and 5km Charity Challenge, we are thrilled to announce our “Champions for Kids” level donors – a circle of our most committed friends who have stepped up to support kids and families…

I want to let you know why I am walking this Charity Challenge for Cassie and Friends.  “Autoimmunity is the system of immune responses of an organism against its own healthy cells and tissues. Any disease that results from such an aberrant immune response is termed an ‘autoimmune disease.’” My…

On Thursday, April 19th, the members of the Cassie and Friends Society Board, youth leaders and parent volunteers came together for our Annual General Meeting. We are excited to share the report provided by Cassie and Friends’ Co-Founder and Board Chair, David Porte, outlining the amazing things we’ve been able…

Cassie and Friends Society, in partnership with Arthritis Consumer Experts, is leading a call for the BC Government to drastically improve the outlook of children with SJIA by allowing reimbursement coverage for canakinumab for the small number of children who need it. Our campaign for equitable access has now reached the media,…

Kadi Nicolson is a Physiotherapist in Surrey, BC, who also lives with Juvenile Arthritis.  In June, she gave a talk called, How to Navigate Sport, Recreation and JIA, based on her own experiences balancing a passion for sport with chronic pain. Read Kadi’s story below and watch her full talk for…

Teens Taking Charge: Andrea’s JIA After being diagnosed with Juvenile Arthritis at the age of two, Andrea’s childhood and teen years were much different than those of her peers. Her experiences with doctors’ visits and medications from such a young age forced her to mature faster and understand things her…

Donation marks ten years of dedicated support for kids and families affected by Juvenile Arthritis and other rheumatic diseases in British Columbia and Canada. Cassie and Friends is proud to announce today our $140,000 gift to BC Children’s Hospital to support children and families affected by Juvenile Arthritis – a…

A teen has created a new website detailing what it’s like to grow up with Periodic Fever Syndrome (PFS). When asked to design a “Personal Project” for a school assignment, the teen knew this was the perfect opportunity to spread more awareness about PFS and maybe even help other kids and families who…

Read Cassie’s letter to Selena Gomez who will be in‪ ‎Vancouver‬ for her ‪#‎RevivalTour‬ on May 14th. Selena revealed last year last year that she was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease, ‪Lupus‬, back in 2013 and underwent chemotherapy. Approximately 1 in 10,000 children in Canada will develop Lupus, most frequently between the ages of 11 and…

We have officially begun registration for the Cassie & Friends Team in the 2016 Scotiabank Charity Challenge Run/Walk Event!  To help announce our 9th year of literally stepping up for kids with rheumatic diseases and to get you excited about joining the team, we wanted to share this speech (below) made by Cassie & Friends Co-Founder,…

David Porte knew something was wrong with his infant daughter when he took her out of her crib one morning and she couldn’t walk. Little Cassie had been active and healthy up to that point, so this development left her parents puzzled and worried. Neither Porte nor his wife, a…