They’ve been living with rheumatoid arthritis since they were children and on Saturday they hope to show Kamloops residents what it’s like to walk in their shoes.

Trisha Moffatt-Smith and Marcia Andrew, two Kamloops women in their early 30s, are gathering teams for the Amazing Mini Race for Arthritis, an awareness builder and fundraiser for the Arthritis Society of B.C.

“We thought, ‘Let’s do something that brings awareness to the Arthritis Society in B.C. and something that we can do together,” said Moffatt-Smith.

So, on Saturday, they’ve organized a team event in which participants will race through town, following clues to guide them from point to point.

Each stage of the race is designed to employ cognitive and physical skills that highlight the challenges faced by people living with debilitating arthritis.

“People think arthritis is an old-person’s disease,” said Moffatt-Smith, who at 34 has such severe rheumatoid arthritis she must use a cane most days to walk the shortest of distances.

“I spend $1,700 a month on medication just to keep me going and I’ve been on prednisone for two years straight.… as well, right now I’m on the very newest medication and it’s very scary because they don’t know the long-term side effects at this point.”

Moffatt-Smith’s arthritis affects the simplest of her daily activities, such as brushing her teeth and shampooing her hair. It also limits the distance she can walk for shopping (malls are out of the question) and the number of days she can muster the physical strength to perform her desk job at Royal LePage Realty (she works no more than a day and a half each week).

“I have to say there are times when you sit down and cry because you just can’t do things,” she said.

“I think definitely as an adult it’s more of an emotional disease, even though it’s physically limiting. As a child, you always had your parents to depend on. But when you’re an adult and you live on your own it’s a lot more real.”

In the coming months, both women will be attending international events to fundraise for the Arthritis Society of Canada. Andrew will run 10 kilometres at a Joints in Motion marathon in Greece and Moffatt-Smith will be a guest speaker at a Joints in Motion marathon in Honolulu.

Anyone who would like to learn more about either of those events or to sign up a two-person team for this weekend’s Amazing Mini Race for Arthritis can call 250-320-1388.