LANCASTER – The A.V. Valley Fever Alliance will host its inaugural Valley Fever Walk on Saturday, Aug. 12, in Lancaster.
Themed “What’s in the Wind,” the event will be held at Apollo Park, located at 4555 West Avenue G, near Fox Airfield. Event registration will begin at 7:15 a.m., followed by opening ceremonies at 8 a.m., and activities and entertainment until 12 p.m.
Organizers will distribute free information on Valley Fever, free bracelets, and will have games for kids, henna tattoos, face painting, music, and dancing. Those who register will receive a free raffle ticket and the opportunity to win prizes. Hamburgers, hot dogs, and drinks will be served from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
The public is invited to attend this free family and dog-friendly event. Organizers are encouraging survivors of Valley Fever and their supporters to attend the event and share their experiences with others. Participants may also walk the park and enjoy beautiful surroundings.
August is deemed Valley Fever Month, and the A.V. Valley Fever Alliance hopes to foster community awareness of this fungal disease endemic.
“It is our goal to provide education to both the public and professionals alike regarding this underreported illness,” organizers said in a news release.
According to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Valley Fever is on the rise and residents of the Antelope Valley are almost nine times more likely to contract Valley Fever than residents of the rest of the county.
The infection is caused by a fungus spore that grows in certain types of soil. Patients become infected by breathing in spores present in airborne dust, typically during windy conditions or in areas where dust is stirred by activities such as construction or gardening.
Most people affected with Valley Fever show no symptoms, but some can develop flu-like illnesses, with severe cases leading to pneumonia or meningitis.
The A.V. Valley Fever Alliance is seeking volunteers to assist with the inaugural Valley Fever Walk on Aug. 12. Volunteers are needed for set-up, operations, and clean-up, according to organizers.
Donations to help fund the event are welcome, tax deductible, and can be made to Antelope Valley Dust Control Group, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. For more information on donating, contacting Susan Zahnter at 661-724-2043 or email fugitivedustvalleyfever@gmail.com.
The inaugural Valley Fever Walk is being held in collaboration with the Antelope Valley Resource Conservation District and the Antelope Valley Dust Control Group.
[Information via news release from the A.V. Valley Fever Alliance.]
Previous related story: Valley Fever on the rise in LA County
–
Sharon Frazier says
This is wonderful, I am a sufferer of VF and so Blessed that it was finally diagnosed. My and I will be there
No More Solar Farms says
God bless you Sharon. We will walk and protest the onslaught of solar farms which are causing this dreaded disease.
RAH says
Where’s the class action law suit?!?!
M Young says
I am a Valley Fever survivor and very blessed to be alive today. I have to thank Dr. Ko who aggressively treated me and the staff at Palmdale Regional Hospital. When I was admitted, I had no idea that I would be a statistic to this disease. I’ve learned to be very cautious and a mask is my best friend here in this valley. I can’t stress enough how important it is to take precaution and wear a mask when the winds are blowing up here or you are doing anything that has to do with soil or dirt. Not sure how I got Valley Fever but we are guessing from the Solar Farms that were being builit on the West Side where I live and the dirt that was being stirred up at the time of installation was carrying the spores in which I possibly could of inhaled. I wouldn’t wish this disease on anybody and hope those of you reading this will take steps to prevent it from happening to you or a loved one.
Sam says
Thank you M Young for sharing your story. It is becoming more and more obvious why we are seeing a large increase in Valley Fever cases, and the solar farms are to blame. It is time to take action to stop the proliferation of these killing fields in our back yard. Show your support at the upcoming Valley Fever Walk, write letters to our elected representatives, and attend city meetings where they attempt to annex more land in the West Valley and ruin it and contaminate our air.
crystal says
I actually knew someone who died from this.
Concerned Resident says
Thank you for bringing awareness to a very serious situation in the Antelope Valley. With the proliferation of solar farms ruining the west part of the AV, it is inevitable that Valley Fever is on the rise due to the massive moving of the earth for these projects and little, if any, mitigation.
To hear Vice Mayor Crist blame this on grazing sheep is as laughable as when he was scaring us in Lancaster by saying a power plant was going to create a 6 mile high cloud of pollution that would travel over our soccer fields and kill children.
Mayor Parris is equally to blame for his almost religious fervency in putting solar farms all over West Lancaster and his newly annexed land in Antelope Acres. Shame on him for having no regard for the people who live there.
If he would just take a flight in his private fossil fueled airplane and head east/northeast, he would see plenty of land to put solar farms in where there aren’t a lot of people.
You have to wonder how much money they are making off this.
JPB says
To blame sheep for causing Valley Fever is as bizarre as claiming that the rise in Lancaster’s crime is because it’s a college town.
Remember this from a 2015 article in the paper?
Statistically, Crist said, Lancaster is safer than Santa Barbara or San Luis Obispo, which according to the FBI’s national report for 2012 had crime rates of 387 and 455.
“Those two are college towns. The city of Lancaster is also a college town; we have a huge college facility here, we have a lot of the administrative buildings here for all the county, all the resources, the county services; all those resources are located in Lancaster. All those demographics are located in Lancaster,” Crist said.
Sheep. Six mile high pollution clouds. College town. Bird sounds lowering crime. BLVD better than Disneyland. Asians and The Gays raise education lower crime. These are just some of the gems from our Lancaster brain trust.
No wonder why we are a laughing stock.