For her mitzvah project, Skylar H. is marking the milestone with a fundraising project rooted in love, remembrance, and hope. She recently decided to raise funds for the Scleroderma Research Foundation in memory of her grandmother, Kathryn “Kathy” Karson, who passed after a long battle with scleroderma.
“I am doing this in memory of my grandma, who was always full of love,” Skylar says. “As I celebrate my Bat Mitzvah, I want to turn my grief into action.”
“Because it is a “rare” disease, it often doesn’t get the same level of funding as others,” she explains. “My goal is to raise money to help ensure that other families don’t have to lose their grandmothers, other family members or friends to this disease.”
“Watching her go through that struggle showed me how much we need better treatments and, eventually, a cure,” says Skylar. “This is a cause that means the world to meand my family.”
By dedicating her project to the SRF, she hopes to raise awareness and support research aimed at better treatments for people living with scleroderma.
Pictured: Kathy with her grandchildren (including Skylar)
