A car is only as good as its driver, and Maurice Irvine wasn’t as physically sharp as he used to be.
Just getting his car started was problematic, because his grip wasn’t strong enough to turn the key anymore. Steering presented another challenge, but it took nearly a year to find out why.
Irvine was diagnosed with ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in January 2007. The fatal neuromuscular disease progresses rapidly, robbing 80 per cent of those afflicted of the ability to move, to speak and to eventually breathe.
After his diagnosis, Irvine and his wife, Peggy, relocated from Brockville to Kingston to be nearer his doctors. The 55-year-old is now in a wheelchair, is unable to speak and is reliant on a feeding tube for nourishment.
“We didn’t know much about ALS when my father was diagnosed, and the more we learned, the less we wanted to know,” says Irvine’s son Matthew, who moved back in with his parents to assist with his father’s care. “Hope is a hard thing to hold on to when there’s no cure.”
Matthew Irvine and hundreds of others will be creating hope at the Kingston WALK for ALS on June 27th at Lake Ontario Park. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. and the 5 km walk at 10 a.m. Participants can also register and collect donations online at www.walkforals.ca.
Now in its ninth year, the WALK for ALS is the ALS Society of Ontario’s signature event and largest annual fundraiser. In 2008, more than 5,000 participants raised $1.15 million. Seventy per cent of the proceeds fund the province’s equipment and support services programs, while the remaining 30 per cent funds research towards a cure. Kingston is one of 28 communities across Ontario holding walks this year. Last year’s walk raised more than $33,000, despite wet weather.
“The ALS Society of Ontario’s goal is to help ease the physical, emotional and financial burdens ALS creates,” says Maureen Sheahan, President & CEO, ALS Society of Ontario. “With the help of volunteers and supporters across the province, we’ve grown the WALK for ALS into our most successful and anticipated event. We ask the public to help us continue this success story in 2009.”
For more information, or to support the walk, visit www.walkforals.ca.
ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a fatal and rapidly progressive neuromuscular disease affecting more than 1,000 Ontarians and their families. There is no cure or effective treatment. Eighty per cent of those affected die within two to five years of diagnosis. The ALS Society of Ontario is a non-profit organization committed to providing equipment and support services to increase quality of life and provide independence, dignity, hope and choice to people with ALS.
