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Follow on Google News | Sydney Pearson receives Leader of Tomorrow AwardDelta, BC resident Sydney Pearson will receive the ALS Society of Canada’s Leader of Tomorrow Award (age 5-13 category) in recognition of her outstanding efforts to raise awareness and funds for ALS.
By: Bobbi Greenberg Sydney, 10, lost her maternal grandmother to ALS at a young age. Since then, she has been actively participating in fundraising and awareness-building projects for ALS along with her family. The youngest member of Team ALS BC & Yukon, Sydney started volunteering with her mother, Donna Bartel, recipient of ALS BC’s Volunteer of the Year Award in 2002, at ALS-fundraising events such as, ‘Run Walk and Roll for ALS,’ as soon as she could walk. On her fifth birthday, she asked her friends to make donations to ALS in memory of her grandmother. She is involved in all aspects of fundraising from operating a lemonade stand to selling raffle tickets at ALS BC events. In 2010, she actively supported her mother at a triathlon fundraising event, ‘Tri’ing to End ALS’ which raised more than $5,700. She plans to support her father who has entered the triathlon, ‘Tri’ing to End ALS year 2,’ in 2012. “Understanding the need to support others through sharing time and energy at such a young age makes Sydney one of our best youth ambassadors,” The Leader of Tomorrow Award recognizes youth and young adults who individually or as part of a group are making a difference in the lives of those living with ALS through their volunteer efforts. ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a rapidly progressive and fatal neuromuscular disease that causes the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. As the nerve cells die, people with ALS lose control of their muscles, which makes breathing, eating and even smiling almost impossible. Eighty per cent of those diagnosed will die within two to five years. The ALS Society of Canada, founded in 1977, is the only national voluntary health organization dedicated solely to the fight against ALS and support for those living with ALS. The Society funds research towards a cure for ALS, supports provincial partners in the provision of quality care for those living with ALS, and provides information to build awareness about the disease. The vision of the ALS Society of Canada is to find a cure for ALS. -30- For more information, please contact: Wendy Toyer Executive Director ALS Society of British Columbia & Yukon Tel: 604-685-0737 wendy@alsbc.ca Bobbi Greenberg Director of Communications ALS Society of Canada Tel: 1-800-267-4257 ext. 208 bg@als.ca End
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