Motorcyclists to rally for sick Lake County teen Sept. 12

Motorcycle riders from across the area will be gathering outside a Spring Grove bar and grill next month, then ride through Lake County and southeastern Wisconsin to help a local teen who's been battling sickle cell anemia since birth.

Javon's Motorcycle Ride will depart KC's Cabin, 309 Route 173, at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, for an all-day cruise that will end about 5 p.m. back at the eatery for food and drinks.

Javon Ayers has dealt with sickle cell anemia his entire life. Every month he has to receive a four-hour blood transfusion in order to keep his hemoglobin count up. It's just one of the many treatments he receives at University of Illinois at Chicago: Sickle Research Center, according to fundraiser organizers.

Unless cured, the average life expectancy of Javon and others like him is just 40 years of age.

Sickle cell anemia is an inherited red blood disorder that results in those who have it developing abnormal hemoglobin, which can cause some cells to become sickle-shaped and have difficulty passing through small blood vessels. A sickle cell patient's red blood cells live up to an average of 16 days, and eventually become stiff, distorted in shape, and cause clots in the vessels. This can eventually lead to permanent damage to the brain, heart, lungs, kidneys, liver, bones and spleen.