[BobbyB]

Crippled body can't kill spirit

Ruth Sheehan, Staff Writer


If only Sarah Witt had known which run would be her last. She might have gone farther. Might have exalted in it more.
But this is not a story of what-ifs. It is the tale of a runner who cannot, will not, be stopped.

It was the spring of 2004 when Witt, an avid -- nay, fanatical -- runner, began noticing her left leg was dragging on her long runs.

That summer, she started getting sick off and on, strange achy viruses and virulent bouts of strep throat that increasingly refused to respond to treatment. By fall, she was in intensive care -- the strep had taken over her entire system, leaving her unable to walk.

The doctors performed test after test. They decided it was a quirk; they promised, over time, that Witt's strength would return.

It seemed to, at first. She could walk with a cane. She dreamed of running again. Meanwhile, the doctors were unable to figure out what was wrong. "They told me it was all in my head," Witt "said," rolling her eyes.

I put quotations around the word "said" because two-and-a-half years later, Witt can no longer speak. Those powerful running legs are confined to a motorized wheelchair. Her arms are bent and awkward. Her hands are too weak to use the special keyboard that has been her voice for nearly a year.

So instead, she writes short phrases on a dry erase board and uses facial expressions to tell her husband, Jeff, what part of the story to tell next.

In the summer of 2005, at a remarkable new clinic at Duke, she was finally diagnosed with PLS, primary lateral sclerosis, a disease similar to the more commonly known ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. The disease causes the brain to send destructive messages to the body, gradually shutting down its functions. It is painful. It is ultimately fatal. There are drugs to ease the symptoms and perhaps slow the course. There is no cure.

So at age 40, the mother of two children (9 and 11), the successful magazine writer, the woman who had trained dozens of other runners to reach their potential, finds herself stuck in a body that simply will not cooperate.

But her mind is sharp as ever. Her spirit has never been stronger.

In 2006, she came up with the idea of a one-mile race to raise money for research into motor neuron diseases such as PLS. She dubbed it the Magnificent Mile.

She wanted the event to combine all the elements of running that she loves: speed and competition but also community. It was important to her that people could walk, or roll; that children could join in, too.

That first race, in November, drew 402 participants.

This year, the mile has USA Track and Field certification and will be held at 2 p.m. Sept. 16 in downtown Raleigh, part of the Second Empire series of road races. See ncroadrunners.org/magmile.

Mike Walsh, president of the N.C. Roadrunners Club (who was trained for his first marathon by Witt) has waived the entrance fee for a slate of elite runners. A fun run/walk will follow.

This year they expect more than 700 participants.

Witt will be there in her motorized chair. Make no mistake, she will finish the course. If running taught her one thing, it was pushing forward when others might falter. It was keeping an eye on the finish line while savoring every moment along the way.


Columnist Ruth Sheehan can be reached at 829-4828 or ruth.sheehan@newsobserver.com.

http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/693981.html

[BobbyB]

ALS walk set for Saturday

By RONALD ZAJAC

Staff Writer


SMITHS FALLS -- It's a five- or 10-kilometre walk with results that can go a much greater distance.

The ninth annual Walk for ALS takes place in Smiths Falls on Saturday, with registration at the Royal Canadian Legion on Main Street at 9 a.m. and walkers and runners hitting the pavement at 10 a.m.

Proceeds from the event will go in part to supporting local ALS sufferers, and in part to funding research into the disease.

That research funding is critical, said Marion Williams, the regional manager of the ALS Society of Ontario's Champlain Region, which includes Lanark, Leeds and Grenville.

In the past year, said Williams, neurologists have learned more about ALS than they have ever learned before, and Canadian researchers are at the forefront of this accelerated progress.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a fatal neuro-degenerative disease.

It typically affects two in every 100,000 Canadians and a third of its victims are under 45, said Williams. Researchers do not yet know its cause, she said.

In eastern Ontario, including Kingston and Ottawa, Williams deals with some 160 ALS patients, a number that remains steady because, unfortunately, as patients die, others are diagnosed. The Lanark, Leeds and Grenville chapter of the ALS Society is holding two simultaneous walks, one in Smiths Falls and the other in Almonte.

Walk co-ordinator Sandra Burson said 60 per cent of the walk's proceeds will go to support services for ALS sufferers in the local area, while the remainder will fund research. Organizers hope the two pledge-driven walks will raise $30,000 to $40,000, said Burson.

Participants in the Smiths Falls walk will begin at the legion and head down Main Street to Chambers Street, then follow Chambers to the public library. From there, they will head down Beckwith Street across the bridge to Jasper Avenue, where they will turn left and proceed over Old Slys Road and up Elmsley Street back to Main.

People taking part in the 10-kilometre walk will repeat the route, said Burson. The event will include a barbecue, which is open to the public, sponsored by M&M Meat Shops.

People interested in getting a pledge form can call Burson at 284-1459.


Published in Section A, page 4 in the Wednesday, September 5, 2007 edition of the Brockville Recorder & Times.
Posted 5:01:11 PM Wednesday, September 5, 2007.

[BobbyB]

Macomb to host first ALS Walk/Ride
By Craig Finlay/Journal Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, September 4, 2007 11:00 PM CDT
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MACOMB - Registration is still open for anyone wishing to participate in the Macomb ALS Walk/Ride Saturday.

The ALS Walk is an annual, national event composed of over 150 different walks and this is the first year one will be held in Macomb, according to event organizer Amy Morris.

"It's free to participate," Morris said. "We ask that they either ask friends or co-workers to sponsor them in the walk or the bicycle ride or, if they like, to make a donation themselves."


The walk starts and ends at the Maple Avenue Christian Church, 1300 Maple Ave. in Macomb, and winds through Macomb for a total distance of three miles. There is a simultaneous 10-mile bike ride that also starts and finishes at Maple Avenue. Registration and donation forms are available at Bonnie's Cameo, Curves for Women and the YMCA in Macomb, as well as on line at http://www.alswalkride.com.

For those who cannot participate in the walk or the ride, there is a third fundraising option. At 2 p.m., following the walk and ride, the church will host a silent auction featuring items donated by local businesses and residents.

"Oh, there are so many things up for auction - we have tickets to St. Louis Cardinals game, Gamage's has donated at DVD player, a garbage disposal from Connor Co.," Morris said. "We've got a variety of gift baskets that local individuals have made up, a gift certificate for a free cheesecake from the Secret Garden, season tickets to men's and women's basketball at Western [Illinois University], too many to list."



Halfway along the route, in Chandler Park, a number of activities will be set up for walkers and community members. Mindy Trotter, of Noah's Ark in Macomb, will share any sales of her custom-made teddy bears to the Macomb ALS association. In addition, the McDonough District Hospital will give free glucose screenings, and walkers will have the opportunity stop for a free backrub and/or refreshments.

Amy Morris began organizing the Macomb ALS Walk/Ride following the death of her mother, Raylene, from the illness on Nov. 1, 2006. There is no cure for ALS, or amyotrophic lateral scleroris, commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Those afflicted with the disease gradually lose the ability to move as the nerve pathways between the brain and spinal cord are attacked. Though a person in the final stages of the illness may be unable to move, the mind usually stays unaffected and alert.



For a while, after she lost the ability to speak, Raylene was able to communicate using a keyboard, which spoke for her, in a computerized voice. She used this device to speak about her disease to audiences including the children in Amy's 1st grade class or the congregation at Maple Avenue. Jason Cale, of Country Insurance and Financial Services, the ALS Walk/Ride is a member of that congregation and heard her 'speak.'

"She's one of the strongest persons that I have ever met," Cale said. "To see her deal with such a terrible disease, she always had a smile on her face, and even though she was confined to a wheelchair, she was very active in Maple Avenue Christian Church ... we'd see her every Sunday."

Registration for the walk starts at 9:00 a.m, followed by an opening ceremony and pronouncement by Mayor Mick Wisslead that Saturday is Macomb ALS Day. The walk/ride begins at 10:00 a.m.

[BobbyB]

WINE DIVAS THE SAUCY SISTERS HOST “SIP A MERLOT FOR MARCY” BENEFIT SEPTEMBER 13th

Wine Tasting Event Will Raise Funds for Marcy Payne, Founder of Happy Tales Humane


Wine divas/educators Barbara Nowak and Beverly Wichman (known as The Saucy Sisters), authors of two nationally distributed books about wine, will introduce women to the wacky side of wine at a tasting event in Franklin on Thursday, September 13th.

Proceeds from “Sip A Merlot For Marcy” will benefit Marcy Payne, who has suffered from ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) for seven years. Until her diagnosis in 2000, Marcy was conducting the daily operations of Happy Tales Humane (the no kill animal shelter she started in Franklin), leading Brownie troops and entering (and winning) 5K and 10K races.

ALS is a motor neuron disease which doctors say is always fatal. Fifty percent of patients die within three years of diagnosis. Marcy stopped walking Thanksgiving of 2001, had to get a feeding tube to eat September of 2002, and since March of 2003 has been quadriplegic and on a ventilator in her family's living room. As Marcy's caregiving took more and more of her husband Rob's time, he had to leave the advertising agency he helped start to devote all of his time to Marcy's care.

Before Marcy's illness, the Saucy Sisters shared more than a few glasses of wine with her. And more than a few laughs as well. “We figured we could help Marcy and Rob by doing two of the things we do best: drink wine and laugh,” said Nowak. “And get other women – and their gal pals – to join us,” added Wichman. “We do wine tasting events for women's groups (based on our first wine book The Saucy Sisters' Guide to Wine: What Every Girl Should Know Before She Uncorks) and just decided to organize our own party in an effort to contribute to Marcy’s caretaking and raise awareness of ALS.”

The Sisters will guide the group through a tasting of selected wines and hors d'oeuvres. The wines have been donated by Victoria Pierce Turner Ventures and include Mountain Dome Brut Washington State Sparkling Wine, Foris Vineyards 2004 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay, Foris Vineyards Grenache Rosé, and Foris Vineyards 2001 Rogue Valley Fly-Over Red (a blend that is 50 percent Merlot...of course).


The sisters will “uncork” their presentation from 6:30 - 8 pm at Nowak's Franklin home. They promise wine education with a “glass of humor” to combat the snobbery and elitism usually associated with wine. Among other subjects, they will tell how to judge a man by the wine he drinks and how to match wines with amorous escapades. While the event is targeted to women wine drinkers, the sisters say they enthusiastically welcome any man brave enough to attend.

Anyone unable to attend the event may still contribute to Marcy’s care by sending her a virtual flower at www.flowersformarcy.com. Visitors to the website can plant flowers around the Payne's (virtual) house and leave a message. Rob says, “I plan to show Marcy the web page of our virtual yard each morning and read her each new message left with the donation.”

The cost of the wine tasting event is $35. Reservations are required and can be made online at www.SaucySisters.com or by calling 484-266-9092.

http://www.localwineevents.com/Nashv...nt-145236.html