Benefit show set for ALS
By Jasiri Whipper (Contact)
The Post and Courier
Wednesday, October 1, 2008



The South Carolina Chapter of The ALS Association will host the Wild West Show as a fundraiser for ALS — amyotrophic lateral sclerosis also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

The event, which is sponsored by Bob Hammond Construction and Diamond W Rodeo Productions, will be held Friday and Saturday at the Texas Roadhouse off Melnick Drive in North Charleston.

Proceeds raised at the event will go toward The South Carolina Chapter of The ALS Association.

Festivities will include live entertainment, square dancing, whip handling, "wild west" shootouts, gun spinning, ranch roping and branding.

Attendees are asked to bring a toy donation to support Debi's Kids Angel Tree, an annual initiative led by Debi Chard of Channel 5 News.

The fundraiser will begin at 5:30 p.m. Friday and at 4 p.m. Saturday.

The event will help the local ALS association raise awareness and funds for local patient services programs.

One of the greatest demands is for equipment that would improve mobility, said Rebecca Jordan, chapter executive director.

ALS strikes about 15 Americans daily, shutting down nerve cells responsible for movement. Limbs weaken and atrophy before paralysis spreads to the trunk of the body. Seventy percent of people with ALS die within five years, according to the ALS Association's Web site.

"If you know somebody who has ALS, do what you can to assist the family," Jordan said. "A lot of people fall through the cracks because they don't know there is help out there."

Jimmy Rentz, 41, of North Charleston was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease in late 2001. Rentz, a career welder, had to stop working earlier this year in the tool room at Detyens Shipyard on the old Navy base in North Charleston.

He remembers well the spontaneous days of his youth. They were filled with friends, family, pool games and hours spent on the beach.

Life is now very different.

Rentz, who is married with one daughter who lives in Virginia, spends most of his days at home. He reads the Bible often. ALS has emboldened his faith life, he said. He and his wife Tammy find solace in the scriptures.

"My confidence and belief is in Christ," Jimmy said. "The weaker I get physically, the stronger I get spiritually."

Both agree that since Jimmy's diagnosis there have many tear-filled difficult days.

Tammy now accepts the fact that the disease will one day rob her husband of his mobility, but she hopes his life will be used to bring more awareness to a disease for which there is no known cause or cure.

"Everyday is a gift and we're trying to live that way," Tammy said. "You have to wake up and say, 'Hey I'm breathing and it's a great day.'"

For more information about the ALS fundraiser or services, call 971-0933 or visit www.scalsa.org.

Reach Jasiri Whipper at 937-5540 or jwhipper@post andcourier.com.



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