When junior Ashley Hibma was first diagnosed with Celiac disease at age twelve, her life was changed forever.

Due to the extreme dietary change Ashley was thrust into at a young age—Celiac disease means she can no longer consume wheat, barley, malt, or rye—she experienced multiple tribulations in not only her personal health but also in social activities. About two million people in the United States alone also have Celiac disease and, therefore, share the same problems with very little representation. Empowered to make a difference, Ashley recently founded the newest member of FHC’s group of clubs: Allergy Safe Club.

“After experiencing the hardships of not only going through a huge dietary change but also a social change where people often excluded me for something I couldn’t control, I was pushed to advocate for myself and the community as much as possible,” Ashley said. “I did my TED Talk on my Celiac diagnosis last year, and I ended up taking it to FHC Inspires that spring.”

Coincidentally, Honors English 9 teacher Sarah Velie attended last year’s FHC Inspires, where she witnessed Ashley passionately teaching the audience about Celiac disease. Velie had also been diagnosed with Celiac a few years before the event and related deeply to Ashley’s situation.

Afterward, Mrs. Velie and Ashley connected over their dietary restrictions. Velie was glad to see Ashley portraying Celiac positively because, from an outward perspective, a disease such as Celiac can be seen as disheartening. This conversation led to Velie becoming the club advisor.

“I didn’t really know anybody else with Celiac disease,” Velie said. “Later, I found out that I was misdiagnosed, but for five years, I thought I had [Celiac] and had the same dietary restrictions as her. So, after connecting with a TED Talk, I think [Ashley] knew that I understood it as well. So she approached me about potentially being the advisor.”

The next Allergy Safe Club meeting is set for Thursday, March 7. Ashley is planning for the developing meetings of the club to be mainly short, informational meetings to see who has specific types of allergies that need to be taken into account and what their favorite places to eat are around Grand Rapids. After a regular audience begins to attend the meetings, the overall goal is to visit an allergy-friendly restaurant once a month.

Junior Grace Chen attended the first meeting, alongside Ashley, where she witnessed the passion and hard work Ashley has put into the club. Currently, the club requires more members for their weekly activities to proceed. Grace highly recommends anyone interested in learning more about their allergies or anyone without an allergy who is curious about food to join.

“I think people should join [Allergy Safe Club] because it’s cool to just see all the kinds of food that you can eat with allergies that you have,” Grace said. “It’s just a really fun environment to be around other people who have other kinds of allergies and discover new food to eat at the same time.”

At Allergy Safe Club, students will learn about new allergy-compliant places to eat. Usually, allergy-prone people tend to stick to one or two restaurants known to be safe, but Allergy Safe Club will provide a chance for people to experience new food in a secure environment. Additionally, students with or without allergies who are curious about what it is like to eat with different dietary needs can learn about some of the challenges and blessings found in eating, buying, and talking about food.

Velie believes that it is imperative for students to educate themselves on dietary restrictions since the topic is a paramount concern in millions of people’s lives around the globe. People who aren’t currently constricted by eating specific foods or unaware of certain individuals’ needs tend to exclude others who cannot eat certain items accidentally.

“When you have dietary restrictions, it sometimes can feel like you are the only one who’s experiencing this, and it can be really frustrating, especially if you’re going out to eat and you’re the only one who can’t find anything to eat there,” Velie said. “Sometimes we will have a potluck here at work, and if you have a dietary restriction, it’s upsetting when everybody else is excited about it. I think it’s nice to be able to find a group of people who understand what that is like in your life.”

Furthermore, society has a massive discrepancy between dietary guidelines and dietary restrictions. Diets, often used for health gain, are choices or a lifestyle that can be reversed. Restrictions indicate that particular foods can cause a consumer pain or discomfort of some kind. The fine line between these two lifestyles is often confused in civilization today. For people with dietary limits, others need to be able to distinguish the difference.

Grace also thinks it’s critical for people to be more respectful and accepting towards people with different health needs than them. Individuals who aren’t medically challenged can easily help others feel more comfortable and welcomed in a public setting.

“It’s just important for people to be aware of the dietary restrictions that people have,” Grace said. “And making sure to get them foods that are safe for them to eat at meetings.”

Dietary issues tend to have a less than exemplary reputation for needing expensive ingredients to benefit someone’s health. Due to this stigma, diets, and dietary restrictions are painted negatively in society today. Thousands of people worldwide are not able to afford these types of foods. However, this idea is only partially accurate. Many good fortunes can be elicited from having a community with experiences similar to those of a lone person. Ashley would like the world to know there is more to having a health disability than it seems.

“There’s so much about dietary life that I wish people would know more about,” Ashley said. “It truly gives you more empathy and kindness to the people around you, not just people with allergies. There’s something about being a part of a community like this one. The level of support is unmatched. This club means a lot to me—it’s more support, more stories, more love, more empathy, and more awareness for the allergen community. I’m so excited for this!”