Twice a week Katelyn Bourke plays netball and several times each week she coaches young gymnasts. A former gymnast, Katelyn enjoys passing on her skills and knowledge. Netball and gymnastics are just part of her busy life at the age of seventeen.
Having recently completed Year 11 at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (OLSH) in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs, Katelyn has been planning her final year – and her career.
At school, she chose the VCAL option and is aiming to be a kindergarten teacher. VCAL, the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning. is a ‘hands-on’ option available for students in Years 10, 11, and 12 and it provides students with practical, work-related experience. For Katelyn this has comprised a TAFE course which includes placements at a local kindergarten. Every Friday she has been doing work experience at the local kindergarten and has found the work enjoyable and rewarding.
Looking back on her secondary school years thus far, Katelyn says she has enjoyed being part of a tight-knit community of students and teachers who have been supportive and understanding. OLSH and, before that, St Paul’s Primary School, where Katelyn did her first six years of education, were exceptionally supportive. Teachers and support staff at both schools kept themselves well informed about CF.
Katelyn’s story first appeared in 65 Roses, the CF Victoria magazine in 2006 when she was just one year old. She had been diagnosed with CF at the Royal Children’s Hospital a few hours after her birth.
Then, in a 2010/11 edition, we published an article on Katelyn’s forthcoming first day at primary school. That article was written by her parents, Donna and Martin Bourke and they wrote that they had chosen St Paul’s because of the community feel and the caring nature of the teachers and support staff. At the beginning of the school year, the staff were educated by professionals from CF Victoria and the Royal Children’s Hospital. Donna and Martin had made a prescient choice of schools.
From that time, Katelyn’s older sister, Ella has been very protective and supportive. Ella is now 20 and at university studying to be an occupational therapist. Nine years ago, Ella and Katelyn welcomed another sister, Chelsea, and today, she is also supportive and understanding of Katelyn’s condition. Both Ella and Chelsea are free of CF, but they do carry the gene.
The extended Bourke family and their friends have also been supportive. They help with raising awareness and funds. For many years, they have been part of Team KK in the annual Great Strides event and attend fundraising movie nights for the Abbie Fennessy Trust.
In recent years, Katelyn, having two copies of the Delta F508 gene change, participated in two key drug trials – Orkambi and Trikafta. Both medications proved helpful and, as with most participants, Katelyn has found that Trikafta has boosted her lung function and improved her overall health. She has, however, recently been diagnosed with CF-related diabetes which has not impacted her overall wellbeing but has added to her ongoing care needs.
What are her thoughts for the future? In addition to her kindergarten teaching and gymnastics coaching, Katelyn would love to travel extensively. The first destination on her agenda is New Zealand – the land of her mother’s birth.
This article first appeared in CFCC December Magazine. Written by Tom Valenta.
The views, experiences or comments shared on this website are not medical advice and may not reflect opinions or beliefs of Cystic Fibrosis Community Care. Always seek the guidance of your doctor or other qualified health professional with any questions regarding your health.
