Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/542735
Patton does have one regret: not putting Ava on CW sooner, she says, recalling how her daughter smiled four or five times the Friday before her death, an unusual but lasting gift for her mother. "The three months on Charlotte's Web were the best three months she ever had," Patton says. "I wanted her to experience happiness and comfort, and it brought her that mental and physiological peace." Taking care of such a disabled child was all-encompassing for Patton, but something she had planned to do for the rest of her life. "Before she died, I thought I wanted more time, and now that I have it, I don't want it," she says. Patton, who has asked that friends and family make donations in Ava's honor to Realm of Caring, plans to spend much of her extra time as an advocate for hemp oil's benefits. "I still support it 100 percent. I'm committed from here on out, whether it's talking to Congress or with families. I'll sit on (the Realm of Caring's) board. I'll do whatever they need me to do. There's no question that's part of my purpose." Supporting parents like Patton, as well as the many "marijuana refugees" who relocate to Colorado and have to face legal threats as well as the mortality of their own children, is one of Heather Jackson's main goals. "This is a forgotten community, and they are completely out of options," says Jackson, executive director of Realm of Caring and mother of Zaki, 10, who has Doose syndrome, another catastrophic form of epilepsy. After starting on Charlotte's Web, Zaki has gone 30 months without a seizure. "I have not witnessed families that love their children more," Jackson says. "The fact that they have to think twice or feel like criminals makes my blood boil." Dscover Y u NEIGHBORHOOD FITNESS RESORT 5801 SOUTH QUEBEC ST. GREENWOOD VILLAGE, CO 80111 303.547.3528 | GREENWOODATC.COM for Health & Wellness readers VISIT HW.GreenwoodPass.com Comimeny 3-DAY PASS "I have not witnessed families that love their children more. "The fact that they have to think twice or feel like criminals makes my blood boil." Health and Wellness Magazine • 31