Jessica and Ted Rothe with former Dallas
Cowboy Rocket Ismail and nine-year-old Nathan
Rothe and his friend Collin promoting the
Texas Escalade challenge which resulted in
a Public Service Announcement campaign.
Three thousand miles from his physical therapist and doctors, Nathan Rothe, a 9-year-old boy living with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, experienced the role of an Alaskan musher and the immense power and speed behind a sled dog team in the Iditarod. Nathan lived a week-long Alaskan experience, including the highly coveted role of IditaRider. As an IditaRider, Nathan travelled the first leg of the race, approximately 11 miles through Anchorage with a musher through Make A Wish Foundation.
Ted and Jessica Rothe found out that their son Nathan had Duchenne at the age of 5 when they noticed he had trouble hopping, jumping and running. "It was devastating to find out there is no cure or treatment available to help our son," said Jessica Rothe. The Rothe family, from Highland Village, Texas, have been actively fundraising to help find a cure for Duchenne.
The Rothe family recently participated in a Public Service Announcement and an interview on "Good Morning Texas" with Rocket Ismail, former Dallas Cowboy, on behalf of CureDuchenne to help increase awareness about Duchenne. They promoted the Text 2 CureDuchenne campaign to encourage people to text SAVE to 80888 to donate $10 through the media and through their local school district.
The Rothe's also ran a 5K in the Austin Marathon to support CureDuchenne.
"I have a hard time keeping up with my friends and running," said Nathan. "I want to find a cure so I can play sports with all my friends. I would like to play baseball for the Texas Rangers."
