As I drove to the interview, I pondered on what I would find.  You see I had never done an interview quite like this.  It was truly a country farm.  An all cypress house with barns and animals of all shapes, sizes, and types could be found at the house of Coty Bell, a 14 boy who is plagued with a disease that many people are unaware of.  Coty, when you first meet him, appears to be an ordinary boy, and if you knew him for a long time and he didn’t tell you he had Crohn’s disease you would probably never know it.  Coty is the youngest of five boys, and has lived on the Bell Farm all of his life.

If you go to the county fair then you have seen the name Coty Bell on animals and vegetables.  Another item you will see wherever Coty’s name happens to be, is a blue ribbon, or a trophy, or a big pile of cash.  This young man shows goats, pigs, and steers, (a male bovine that has been castrated), at many fairs and exhibitions across Arkansas.  He said, “At competition the cows are cleaner than I am!”  Coty has won well over $10,000 in the last two years.  That isn’t counting trophies, ribbons, plaques, plates, and belt buckles.  When I looked at the table he set up to show me his awards, it looked like it was a mile high.  Coty rises before the sun does every morning of the year to take care of all of his animals.  Here is a shortened list of his animals:  ducks, turkeys, chickens, rabbits, cattle, dogs, and 2 donkeys.  He works about 6 hours a day with his animals, plus goes to school at Pangburn.

In February of 2004, Coty started having quite a few problems.  After some trips to Little Rock, the doctors diagnosed him with Crohn’s disease.  Crohn’s is a common disease that not many people know anything about, until they learn they have it.  Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory disease of the intestines. It primarily causes ulcerations (breaks in the lining) of the small and large intestines, but can affect the digestive system anywhere from the mouth to the anus. It is named after the physician who described the disease in 1932. It also is called granulomatous enteritis or colitis, regional enteritis, ileitis, or terminal ileitis.  Crohn's disease tends to be more common in relatives of patients with Crohn's disease. It also is more common among relatives of patients with ulcerative colitis.  Coty was taking, 23 pills a day, 161 a week, and 644 pills a month.  His mother said, “We’re taking one day at a time, we know God won’t give us anything we can’t handle.”  Coty is doing a lot better at this point and time, he is now down to 1 pill a day, but he said, “You never know when things could take a turn for the worse.  I just stay busy work with my animals and enjoy life.”  Coty is involved in many different clubs and organizations.  He is a part of:  Arkansas Jr. Cattlemen’s Association, American Boer Goat Association, American Meat Goat Association, Beefmaster Breeders United, Arkansas Jr. Shorthorn Association, Jr. Beta, Future Business Leaders of America, FFA, White County Teen Leaders, Albion Green Horns 4-H, and the County Council.  Coty, it sounds like you need a hobby to fill up your spare time!!!