Organizers of an event that raises funds to fight a debilitating disease are thrilled with the results.
This year’s Walk for ALS-Okeover Inlet and Powell River on April 6 reached a milestone. Despite a rainy start to the day, over 100 people participated, leaving the Laughing Oyster Restaurant at 10 am, led by the Penrose pipes and drums. Upon return, everyone partook of a lunch at the restaurant.
Funds raised are expected to exceed $17,000, making the seven year collective total nearly $90,000.
Funds go toward patient services supporting people living with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) and to ALS research to find the cure.
ALS can strike any adult at any time. It appears suddenly and often becomes apparent in the legs, arms, throat or upper chest area. Patients may trip and fall for no reason, find the muscles in their hands and arms suddenly become weak or they may find it hard to swallow or become alarmed by a sudden inexplicable slurring of speech.
While the usual age at onset is between 45 and 65, people of all ages, ethnicities and social strata are affected.
This rapidly progressive, fatal condition attacks the brain and spinal cord, wasting away the pathways the body needs to transmit signals to the muscles. When they receive no signals, nerve cells die and leave muscles paralyzed. Patients gradually lose their ability to move, eat, or speak as their bodies waste away and their muscles atrophy. Because the disease does not usually affect the senses of taste, touch, sight, smell and hearing, patients generally remain inwardly alert, aware of what is going on around them but often unable to respond to their environment.
The ALS Society of BC and Yukon is dedicated to providing direct support to ALS patients, along with their families and caregivers, to ensure the best quality of life possible while living with ALS. Through assisting research, they are committed to find the cause of, and cure for, ALS.
Donations in support of the walk can still be made online. For more information, interested readers can contact Susan Hanson and Frankie Kellner at [email protected] or Wendy Toyer, executive director, ALS Society of BC, 1.800.708.3228.
