Honorees
Nikki Weeks
Each Team Challenge Participant will be assigned a person battling Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis to run or walk in honor of. Many of you are here because you already know someone who has Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, and it’s great if you want to train for this event in his or her honor. That person can be your Personal Hero.
However, we also have a special person called our Honored Teammate, who has offered to share their personal story as a source of motivation and inspiration for our team. Our Honored Teammate is Nikki Weeks. She is 22 years old and is majoring in nursing at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi. Nikki has been living with Crohn’s disease since she was two years old. She has had 13 operations and survived peritonitis twice. Nikki has been on many different medications and has endured a number of long hospital stays. Severe anemia has required numerous blood and iron transfusions. Recently, Nikki had to be rushed back to Plano from school at A&M to have surgery to remove part of her colon.
Despite these challenges, Nikki has refused to allow Crohn’s disease to control her life. She remains active and determined, and always willing to help others. Nikki has been involved with the Foundation’s summer camp program for a number of years – first as a camper and more recently as a counselor. Nikki is a certified cycling instructor and enjoys teaching fitness classes. She loves marine biology and she volunteers at the Texas State Aquarium and through the Marine Mammal Stranding Network. Although Nikki’s Crohn’s disease kept her out of school this semester, she plans to be back for summer school.
Her disease may slow her down a bit, but she remains determined to achieve her goals, and I know that she can be an inspiration to all of us. So, whether you want to train in honor of Nikki, or in honor of your own personal hero, or both, Team Challenge can make a real difference in your life and in the lives of the children and adults who suffer from Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.