Way to Go! Port Jefferson student named 'Shining Star'
Meara Kelly was named this year’s “Shining Star” by the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. Credit: Kevin Kelly
A Port Jefferson student with an inflammatory bowel disease has been helping to shed a light on the illness as a "Shining Star."
Meara Kelly, a freshman at Earl L. Vandermeulen High School, received the designation from the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation's Long Island Chapter as part of its 2022 Long Island Take Steps Walk. In her role, she encouraged the community to help find cures by participating in this year's event, which was held earlier this month at Belmont Lake State Park in West Babylon.
Kelly, who was diagnosed with Crohn's disease in 2020, experienced extreme weight loss and stunted growth as well as a lack of appetite due to the discomfort from eating.
"When my symptoms started, I didn't understand what was happening," said Kelly, who as a sixth-grader weighed 56 pounds. "It's important to me to raise awareness, because I know a lot of people don't know what Crohn’s disease is."
Kelly has also helped to raise thousands of dollars for the foundation in recent years — including more than $5,000 through online donations and $200 through an Easter candy sale last month in her school's cafeteria.
Her other involvements include being a member of her school's Art Club, Robotics Club and Gay Straight Alliance and a volunteer for the Port Jefferson Free Library and First Presbyterian Church of Port Jefferson.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
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