OWS Against ALS

First off, I'd like to say thank you to everyone involved in the Occupy Wall Street movement, both nationwide and the folks here in DC down at Freedom Plaza. I think you're doing amazing things, and as part of the 99% I thank you. But I'd also like to ask those of you in the DC area to do a little something more, if you can.

From 9:00am to roughly 11:00am on Sunday, October 16th the ALS Association DC/MD/VA Chapter is going to hold its annual Walk to Defeat ALS at the Washington Monument in DC. You may be more familiar with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) by another name: Lou Gehrig's disease. Another famous sufferer of the disease is, of course, Stephen Hawking.

With all of the protests and other events going on in DC this weekend, there's some worry that not many people will show up for the Walk to Defeat ALS. ALS is a relatively obscure disease, affecting only a small portion of the population. In fact, it's occurs so infrequently that it's often difficult to get proper funding for research into a cure or to help serve those with ALS. But in the DC/MD/VA region alone there are over 500 people who currently suffer from this disease, and many more who have already passed away from it.

So I'm asking you, Occupy DC, to come out and show your support. If you can afford to, and wish to, donations would be very welcome. We can always use help to reach our fundraising goals, particularly in the current economy and facing ever-increasing expenses in providing services to our patients and their families. You can also join a Walk Team to fundraise, or even start your own - mine's OWS Against ALS. But much more importantly than any of that, just come out and meet our PALS (People with ALS), their families, and the families walking in memory of PALS who are no longer with us. Show them that they're not alone, and that they haven't been forgotten by 99% of America. Talk with them about their loved ones, talk with our staff, and maybe share some stories of your own about loved ones who have suffered from ALS. For such an obscure disease it seems to have touched so many of us.

ALS is a truly terrible disease. Over time it can make you unable to move, unable to talk, even unable to breathe on your own. In some cases it's accompanied by dementia, but in many others the mind is still active and aware in a body that is increasingly less responsive. It takes a terrible toll on both the people who suffer from it, and their families. And most significantly, it's a disease that knows absolutely no boundaries. People suffer from ALS among all races, all religions, all nationalities, all genders, all sexual orientations, all social and economic classes. Our PALS are the 99%, the 53%, and even the 1%.

This Sunday, let's show them that we all stand together.