Community Northwest Arkansas to ‘Take Steps Toward a Cure’

Event is raising money for the Arkansas Chapter of The ALS Association.

The Arkansas Chapter of The ALS Association encourages Northwest Arkansas to ‘Take Steps Toward a Cure’ Aug. 27 by participating in its 2016 Walk to Defeat ALS.

This Northwest Arkansas event, scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 27, at Compton Gardens in downtown Bentonville, raises awareness about amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease — and the association’s efforts to discover new treatments and a cure through scientific research, advocacy and patient empowerment.

The chapter will have a twomile run at 8 a.m., starting at the Arvest Conference Center in downtown Bentonville. Former UA track coach Coach John McDonnell is the honorary run chair. To register for the run go to www.register-wizard.com/ events/runtodefeatals/register.

The walk registration begins at 9:30 a.m. with ceremonies beginning at 10:30 a.m. Greg Foran, president and CEO of Walmart U.S., is the honorary walk chair. For information about team registration and to register online, visit www.als-arkansas.org “Walk to Defeat ALS.”

“Coming together on this one day helps people living with ALS and their families realize that they are not alone in their journey,” said Richie Roberts, President of the Board of Directors for ALS Arkansas Chapter. “The event also helps to generate the significant financial resources needed to deliver our comprehensive patient-support programs that empower people living with ALS and their families to experience life beyond the limitations of their disease.

In 2015, The ALS Association chapter in Arkansas generated more than $350,000 in donations from their two walks in the state. So far in 2016, more than 1,000 people have either participated or will participle in a Walk to Defeat ALS event around the state.

ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Eventually, people with ALS lose the ability to initiate and control muscle movement and often experience total paralysis and death within two to five years of diagnosis. For unknown reasons, veterans are twice as likely as the general population to develop ALS. There is no cure. Only one drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration modestly extends survival.