by Bea Peterson
On Friday afternoon, August 22, residents at the Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation at Hoosick Falls had a real treat. Though the weather was cool, 13 brave souls stood in the Center’s garden courtyard and participated in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, much to the delight of everyone watching.
[private]The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which has gone viral, started when 29 year old Pete Frates, diagnosed with ALS in 2012, posted an ice bucket video on social media and challenged a few friends to follow his lead. The #ALSIceBucketChallenge has since become a social media sensation, sweeping the country with compassion and support.
New Center Activities Director Christa Caron said, “When two people asked for the same thing in one week, I couldn’t refuse.” One of the Center’s residents has ALS.
The Center’s Administrator and CEO Laura Reynolds was the first to step up. She had been challenged by her sister Maryann Ketchem who lives in California. Maryann’s brother-in-law has ALS. She was also challenged by friend Kate Bradley. None of the other participants had been challenged but participated because they wanted to support ALS research. “It’s not about us,” said Reynolds, “it’s all about them,” referring to the residents and those dealing with ALS.
Diane Bamrick was doused by her son, Scott Bamrick, and Matt LaPorte had the honor of dousing most of the other participants. He participated as well.
Martha Bonneau and her son Michael got iced together, followed by Rebecca Bowen, Marie McAuliffe, Jane Bisson, Sara Roberts, Jane Richardson, Cindy Teal, LaPorte, Sara Nichols and Brittany Bamrick, also doused by her dad, Scott Bamrick.
$556 Donation
The staff at the Center donated $556 to the ALS Association. Diane Bamrick raised $150 of that amount herself. All in all, it was a wonderful event for a wonderful cause.
Latest Amount
According to the ALS media website, “As of Wednesday, August 27, the ALS Association has received $94.3 million in donations compared to $2.7 million during the same time period last year (July 29 to August 27). These donations have come from existing donors and 2.1 million new donors. The ALS Association is tremendously thankful for all of the generous support and awareness that this summer
phenomenon has generated for the cause.”
“The ALS Association has been given a great deal of money and with that comes tremendous responsibility,” said Barbara Newhouse, President and CEO of the ALS Association. “We are absolutely committed to transparency and will be communicating regularly with the ALS community, our donors, the media and the public about progress to invest these dollars wisely in areas that will have maximum impact on the fight against this devastating disease.”
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis – ALS
ALS is a disease of the parts of the nervous system that control voluntary muscle movement. In ALS, motor neurons (nerve cells that control muscle cells) are gradually lost. As these motor neurons are lost, the muscles they control become weak and then nonfunctional.
The word amyotrophic comes from Greek roots that mean without nourishment to muscles and refers to the loss of signals nerve cells normally send to muscle cells. Lateral means to the side and refers to the location of the damage in the spinal cord. Sclerosis means hardened and refers to the hardened nature of the spinal cord in advanced ALS.
In the United States, ALS is also called Lou Gehrig’s disease, named after the Yankees baseball player who died of it in 1941. In the United Kingdom and some other parts of the world, ALS is often called motor neuron disease in reference to the cells that are lost in this disorder.[/private]