A Summerland girl was at the centre of the Academy Awards in Los Angeles this week as celebrities showed support for the little girl’s ongoing struggle.
Four-year-old Kyla Williams is originally from Summerland and was born a healthy baby girl. By the time she reached seven months everything changed as she was diagnosed with intractable Epilepsy. She has rejected all pharmaceutical drugs and by the time she reached the age of two she was prone to 200 to 300 absence seizures per day. Kyla has only found relief from the seizures by using cannabis oil, which is administered by her parents.
At the Oscars, attention was brought to the celebrities about Kyla’s condition and her use of cannabis. To show support for the cause and to wish Kyla well, the celebrities signed several canvas boards during the event. The canvases were made specially to raise money for medical cannabis for sick children and arrived at the awards show thanks to Kyla’s aunt Corina. They were on display in the gift bag room during the event.
“The response was purely amazing and to my surprise a whole lot of celebrities already know your (Kyla’s) story,” said Corina about the experience.
The canvases will now be auctioned off with all the proceeds going towards families to help them pay for their children’s medicine. A total of 170 celebrities signed the boards and learned about Kyla’s Quest and Realm of Caring, two non-profit organizations advocating for medical cannabis use.
Kyla’s epilepsy is said to be controlled with the use of cannabis oil. She takes about 130 mg of Charlotte’s Web THC oil per day and may only have one seizure per week as a result. She is non-verbal, she cannot walk or feed herself, but according to her parents, she finds relief from the oil.
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