Inspired by the plight of three-year old Ayden Markum and his battle with cerebral palsy and intractable epilepsy, Karin Chester launched the first phase of The Missouri Patient Project on October 14, 2016 with a GoFundMe campaign to raise $10,000 to pay for the project and support the efforts to legalize Medical Cannabis in Missouri.
Ayden Markum was the 5th person in Missouri to receive a Medical Marijuana Card under Missouri House Bill 2238, which grants certain patients the right to obtain, possess, and use “hemp extracts” under very narrow diagnosis parameters.
The Industrial Hemp derived non-psychoactive CBD oil helps control Ayden’s seizures, muscle spasms and pain. Medical Cannabis in any other form is not legal in Missouri.
“My mission,” says Chester, “is to photographically and biographically document and record the lives and stories of current and potential Medical Cannabis patients in Missouri. There are literally tens of thousands of people in our state who may be helped by Medical Cannabis. Right now the only diagnosis that is approved for treatment with the Industrial Hemp CBD oil is Intractable Epilepsy. There are almost 20,000 people in Missouri with that diagnosis alone.”
When Missouri cannabis activists’ 2016 Medical Marijuana Campaign fell 23 signatures short of making the November 8, 2016 ballot, a lawsuit was filed against the Missouri attorney general.
“After we lost in court,” recalls Chester, “there were a handful of volunteers that congregated at the hotel we’d been staying at in Jefferson City. We were all still reeling, Ashley (Ayden’s mother) and Ayden among us. It was a difficult night, and there were more than a few of us who weren’t quite ready to leave.”
“As I watched Ashley and Ayden together,” continued Chester, “I found myself wishing I could capture the tender expressions on their faces and the love in their eyes for each other.” That was the moment Chester realized she could tell their stories and that of other patients and their families. She decided to show everyone that legalization of Medical Cannabis is about PEOPLE . “I will document patient’s lives in pictures and words and tell their true story.”
The Missouri Patient Project’s GoFundMe campaign page is here.