Merritt ALS walk raises over $9,000

On Saturday (June 19), a group of Merrittonains came to together to raise funds and awareness for ALS.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (also known as ALS, Lou Gehrig’s disease, or motor neuron disease) is a disease that gradually paralyzes people because the brain is no longer able to communicate with the muscles of the body that we are typically able to move at will. Over time, as the muscles of the body break down, someone living with ALS will lose the ability to walk, talk, eat, swallow, and eventually breathe.

Tammy Brown organized the walk for her dad who was diagnosed with ALS two years ago.

“I wanted to do a fundraiser and walk for my dad,” began Tammy. “Due to COVID-19 it will be a virtual walk. It started out with just me, and it has actually turned out to be a bit bigger than that.”

Brown was thrilled with the turnout on Saturday and was happy to report they raised over $9,000 for the BC ALS Society.

“So happy, we’re really overwhelmed with the community support and everybody who came out to support dad today,” said Brown. “Online it’s sitting at about $8,500 but people have been giving me cheques and cash donations so I’m sure were close, or over $9,000.”

The link to donate to the cause will remain live until the end of this week.

https://www.facebook.com/donate/1221486975022538/