BOARDMAN, Ohio (WKBN) – People from across the Valley went to Boardman Park Saturday morning to spread awareness for a rare illness.

The Neurofibromatosis, or NF, Network hosted their 4th annual Great Steps 4NF Walk, where participants split up into teams and walked three miles to spread awareness for NF.

According to the NF Network’s website, “Neurofibromatosis (NF) is a genetic disorder of the nervous system which causes tumors to form on the nerves anywhere in the body at any time. This progressive disorder affects all races, all ethnic groups and both sexes equally.”

One event organizer said it’s actually the most common genetic disorder out there, with one in 3,000 births diagnosed with it, which is why they said it’s so important to raise awareness.

“You could go through life and not have any complications from it, or sadly, we have a woman here today that lost her son to it at age 17. And that is why we’re here to raise funds to find out what causes this disorder, how we can cure it if we can find a cure and those that already have it how we can make their life a little bit easier,” said Jennifer Karawchyk, volunteer chair for the Ohio NF Network.

She continued to say the event has grown each year and that she looks forward to more people learning about NF.