Chattanooga Allery Clinic Drs. Marc Cromie and Todd Levin see patients every day at their Lee Highway facility who have to fight for air due to respiratory issues. Chattanooga ranks No. 3 on the Top 10 Worst Cities to Live for Asthmatics, as published by the Allergy and Asthma Foundation of America.
That's why they're partnering with the American Lung Association and local resident Jonathan Lehman to bring awareness and education about respiratory issues to the Scenic City. Once Lehman returns from his May climb up Mt. Denali in Alaska, being sponsored in part by the doctors, they will begin a campaign to educate the public about what are very real threats in Chattanooga.
Dr. Marc Cromie, ALA board president Robin Grant, Dr. Todd Levin and Eddie Grant, from left, attend a recent fundraising dinner at Carrabba's to kick off local resident Jonathan Lehman's Fight for Air Climb up Mt. Denali in Alaska. Cromie and Levin are part of Chattanooga Allergy Clinic, which will partner in the education portion of the initiative upon Lehman's return."I figured there's got to be some significant effort happening prior to the initiative to give it some momentum and put a face with the cause," said Lehman, who brainstormed the initiative after being diagnosed with minor asthma. "That's when I decided to go to Alaska to climb Denali. The higher up you go the thinner the air gets, the harder it is to breathe. That to me is parallel to respiratory issues."
Cromie and Levin will visit different events around the city to offer free asthma screenings for kids and educational materials for adults.
"I've got two little kids, so as a parent I feel like it's a big deal," said Lehman. "I think if you can impact children positively it only produces better citizens when they get older."
The city's first-ever Fight for Air Climb will take place at the McKenzie Arena after his return.
"This is a pretty new signature event for the Lung Association itself," said organizer and ALA board member Ed Harrison. "There are so many different events coming about - adventure races. We need something like that for Chattanooga."
Individuals or teams can register until May 17 and find more information online at climbchattanooga.org. Several levels of awards for gender and age groups will be presented after the timed 40-flight (20 up and 20 down) climb in order to encourage annual attendance and goals. There will also be an untimed half-climb.
Whichever path residents choose, it will not be anywhere close to Lehman's more than 20,000-foot trek up the highest peak in North America.
"The goal to me is to get home safe, No. 1, and to have great pictures, because the ultimate reason why I'm going is to make something happen here locally that has a positive outcome," he said.
His eight years of carrying heavy packs into burning buildings as a Chattanooga firefighter will come in handy, as he will have to personally haul all his climbing gear and supplies each step of the way. But making it to the top is not the crowning achievement of this project, he said.
Even though a later second opinion has since cleared Lehman of his asthma diagnosis, he still wants to play a part in surmounting the disease and others like it.
"If it spawns a good project and good education, I don't think the fact of whether I have asthma or not matters," said Lehman.