Student Spotlight: Collins Leming

Noblesville Student Recognized by Arthritis Foundation

Writer / Matt Keating
Photography Provided

Collins Leming, a seventh-grader at Noblesville West Middle School, will be recognized as the Youth Honoree for the Arthritis Foundation’s Walk to Cure Arthritis on May 12 at Conner Prairie.

Her mother, Angie Leming, says she has battled with juvenile idiopathic arthritis since the age of 4.  

“Collins was a healthy four-year-old little girl with lots of energy and giggles,” Leming says. “She loved to dance and loved to perform. In the fall of 2013 she became ill. We thought she was fighting a basic cold like every kid gets while they are in day care.”

During the days that followed, she complained a lot about her hands and legs hurting.

“Collins was notorious for exaggerating the truth as the youngest of three kids,” Leming says. “One morning I was getting Collins out of her car seat, and I sat her on the ground and she crumbled. She kept crying and saying, ‘It hurts mommy.’ I immediately called the pediatrician, and then tried to identify what hurts.”

Collins’ hands were extremely swollen, and she could not even close them to grip the mother’s finger.

“These signs came on almost immediately,” Leming says. “Collins was unable to walk much on her own. I would carry her from the car to my bed where she would spend the rest of her evening. While the kids were playing at the park at day care, Collins sat in the wagon and watched. She had to scoot up the stairs, and could not get off the floor without help because the pressure on her joints was too much to tolerate.”

Mother and daughter spent about four months at different specialists, running all kinds of tests.

“Dr. Scott A. Boschee, her pediatrician, was a wonderful partner and when something was ruled out, he immediately researched to see what else it could be,” Leming says. “In the spring of 2014, she was diagnosed and began arthritis treatments to get her swelling and joints under control. She is very fortunate that a weekly injection was able to subside her symptoms most of the time.”

Collins was able to function like a normal kid and even participate in competitive dance.

“A lot of children are not that fortunate and require infusions, then still have flares, which makes daily function at times impossible,” Leming says. “Collins is in her second round of remission. We don’t know if this is a long-term situation, but are thankful for any week that goes by without the medicine and side effects.”

Another bright spot for Collins was being selected as the Arthritis Foundation Youth Honoree.

“This involves Collins being a voice and telling her story,” Leming says. “When we were going through the process and treatments, Collins never knew another child that fought the same battle as she has. This is hard to handle when you’re an adult, let alone a young child who can often question, ‘Why me?’”

Leming heard about the Walk to Cure Arthritis event from people at Riley Hospital for Children’s rheumatology team.

“We decided to participate last year,” Leming says. “That was the first time she got to see that other children had the same experiences, and she could relate to what she had been through at the age of 12. This year she gets to help spread the word to other families about what resources are available to them, and the army of people that are there to support them.”

Until last year, Leming says she didn’t realize the purpose of the Arthritis Foundation.

“My understanding went as deep as the doctors and nurses we worked with to get Collins treatment,” she says. “As I asked questions, I now know they are a large resource behind the scenes for both adults and children diagnosed with arthritis.”

The Arthritis Foundation’s work varies from researching a cure to partnering with legislatures on current medications to increasing the number of health care providers across the country.

“We are very fortunate in Indiana to have amazing health care at our fingertips, like Riley rheumatology,” Leming says. “There are people in other states that travel to multiple other states and wait for months to get treatment because they don’t have access.”

The 2023 Walk to Cure Arthritis event will be held at 5:30 p.m. on May 12 at Conner Prairie.

“The walk is completely free to participate in,” Leming says. “However, there are fundraisers available. Our goal is to raise awareness across the board. There are fundraisers for those that want to financially support the foundation and what they are doing to help the individuals fighting arthritis, but it doesn’t require a financial commitment to walk.”

Leming adds that there are great activities for families to enjoy like face painting, a DJ and a hot-air balloon.

“You can walk as much or as little as you would like,” she says. “The goal is for people to come, enjoy the evening, and get educated in a battle that is much more common than we realize. Collins and some of the other honorees will also share their story.”

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