White Oak Elementary students tackle rare disease

Batten disease is not a disease that most of us are aware of, unless, of course, you've had the pleasure of knowing John or Ben Sikorra.

The two students at White Oak Elementary School in Westlake Village have inherited the rare neurological disease, which begins in childhood. The symptoms usually start with vision loss and may include mental impairment, seizures and a loss of motor skills.

According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, there is no specific treatment that can halt or reverse the symptoms of Batten disease.

But according to the White Oak Elementary School secondgrade teachers, much is being done to help. The teachers are organizing a cellphone collection drive to support a clinical research study in progress at Rochester University that will help families affected by the disease.

The idea began last summer when second-grade instructors Barbara Greenstein and Sheri Kavanagh went to a teacher training seminar at the Skirball Museum in Los Angeles. There, they learned about how to turn recycling into a communitywide effort. They combined what they learned with an idea to help the Sikorra boys.

Kavanagh says that for each cellphone donated, up to $50 will be donated to Rochester University to help find a treatment and cure for Batten disease and support the families who have been affected.

Those who have unused cellphones lying around the home or office and want to help the environment by recycling—and help raise money for a serious disease—are asked to bring the phones to the front office at White Oak Elementary School or Lindero Canyon Middle School by Nov. 7.

For further information, contact the White Oak office at (818) 889-1450.