MOULTRIE, Ga. — As the season of giving comes to its peak, it is important to remember those around you, even those that you don’t even know.

Thirteen-year-old Joshua Molden has been battling a rare auto-immune disease known as Myasthenia gravis, or MG for short. He was diagnosed in January when he was 12 after his mother, Adrienne Merritt, noticed that and had abnormally low energy and was constantly falling and tripping. The bus drivers and coaches at school were starting to pick up on these symptoms too and knew that something was wrong.

“He kept telling me that he was tired, that he didn’t want to do anything. When I found out what was really wrong, I felt so awful,” said Merritt. 

Molden, a seventh-grade student at Willie J. Williams Middle School, was going to school on the bus as usual one morning when he fell down the bus stairs, too weak to climb them. After a series of tests and exams from the Colquitt County Medical Center, Molden was rushed to Augusta University Health in Augusta, Ga, where he was diagnosed with Myasthenia gravis. 

The disease causes varying degrees of muscle weakness, especially in the eyes and mouth, difficulty swallowing, and rapid fatigue of muscles, including the jaws, which make it hard to eat. Molden’s grandmother and uncle have the same disease, while his mother suffers from multiple sclerosis. 

“His grandmother and uncle on my side of the family have MG and two cousins on his father’s side of the family have it. He’s the third person on each side of the family to possess this disease and the three antibodies,” said Merritt. “Right now, they have him on a drug that treats Myasthenia gravis, and a chemo drug that’s supposed to help the original drug. It’s called an IV IG treatment. The treatment usually lasts about a week; it’s an eight-hour treatment for five days.”

Various members of their church and others from the Colquitt County community have come together to help the family, supplying clothes and food. Merritt’s pastor, the Rev. Julian Griner of Lifespring Community Church, supplied money from his own funds to assist the family in their time of need, she said. 

“I really can’t say thank you enough, to our family and friends, even strangers. Whether it was giving us food or money or just praying, I’d like to extend a really big thank you to everyone who has helped us,” said Merritt.