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2008 Non-Profit Beneficiary
$11.50 from each registrants fee from the 5K Fun Run/Walk will benefit The ALS Association Evergreen Chapter.
The 3.1 mile course begins and ends at Riverstone, along with the full and half Marathon. The route makes a loop through Riverstone on to the Centennial Trail.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as "Lou Gehrig's disease," is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. As the disease progresses, its victims become trapped inside a body they no longer can control; unable to walk, talk, breathe or even blink an eye. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed. There is no effective treatment for ALS, no known cause and no cure.
Based on U.S. population studies, a little over 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS each year. (That's 15 new cases a day.) It is estimated that as many as 30,000 Americans have the disease at any given time. According to the ALS CARE Database, 60% of the people with ALS in the Database are men and 93% of patients in the Database are Caucasian. Military veterans are approximately twice as likely to die from ALS as those who have not served in the military; although the disease can strike anyone, regardless of their age, gender, race or nationality. And it is always fatal – in an average of two to five years following diagnosis.
- The onset of ALS is insidious with muscle weakness or stiffness as early symptoms. Progression of weakness, wasting and paralysis of the muscles of the limbs and trunk as well as those that control vital functions such as speech, swallowing and later breathing generally follows.
- It is estimated that ALS is responsible for nearly two deaths per hundred thousand population annually. More people die every year of ALS than of Huntington's disease or multiple sclerosis and it occurs two-thirds as frequently as multiple sclerosis.
- Approximately 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS each year. The incidence of ALS (two per 100,000 people) is five times higher than Huntington's disease and about equal to multiple sclerosis. It is estimated that as many as 30,000 Americans may have the disease at any given time.
- Although the life expectancy of an ALS patient averages about two to five years from the time of diagnosis, this disease is variable and many people live with quality for five years and more. More than half of all patients live more than three years after diagnosis.
- About twenty percent of people with ALS live five years or more and up to ten percent will survive more than ten years and five percent will live 20 years. There are people in whom ALS has stopped progressing and a small number of people in whom the symptoms of ALS reversed.
- ALS occurs throughout the world with no racial, ethnic or socioeconomic boundaries.
You can help your family, friends and others in their fight against this horrific disease by encouraging family members and friends to work together to find a cure for and improve the lives of those living with ALS. Your support will pave the way for future achievements in the fight against ALS. The 5K Fun Run/Walk offers an exciting, empowering opportunity to raise funds to support patient service programs and cutting-edge research. By participating, both runners and walkers directly impact the lives of those affected by ALS as well as spread awareness for this devastating disease and the urgent need to find treatments and a cure. This is a great, visible way to tell others that you support the fight against ALS.
The Walk to Defeat ALS™ is The ALS Association's national signature event. Each year, over 100,000 people including ALS patients, families, friends and corporate leaders join together to raise funds in support of The Association’s cutting-edge research and community-based patient services programs. Now in its ninth year, approximately 150 Walks will be held around the country in 2008. Come join us and bring your friends and family for the 4th Annual Spokane Walk! You can register early by accessing our website at www.alsa-ec.org.
Venue: Walks; fundraising for the ALS Association
Location: Mirabeau Park, 2426 N Discovery Pl., Spokane Valley, WA
Date: 09/13/2008
Times: Registration/check in at 9am; Walk begins at 10am
Prices: Fundraising through individual or team registrations
For more information, call 1-866-786-7257 or visit our website at www.alsa-ec.org
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