Dad fighting ALS with daughter at his side
A couple of weeks ago, I received an email from Monte Sereno resident Doug McNeil. I wrote about him a few years ago when he was honored at the White House for his work on a literacy project for the Los Gatos Morning Rotary Club. This time around, he wanted to get the word out about a fundraiser he and his daughter were working on together for the Silicon Valley Walk to Defeat ALS on Oct. 13.
“I’m typing this email with my eyes, as the disease has claimed all my motor functions,” McNeil wrote.
McNeil, a 59-year-old aerospace engineer, was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease or ALS, the summer of 2017. It’s had a devastating impact on his body. But it his mind and spirit remain strong. When he was diagnosed, he asked what he could do to advance research, to help other patients and help his own family through it.
“I’m pleased to say I have made great progress on each objective,” wrote McNeil, who worked at Lockheed Martin, was part of four startups and has a long resume of community service work.
No one could be prouder of his effort than his 26-yearold daughter, Jessica Eastland. She’s put together Team Maverick, a group of family and friends that will be walking in her dad’s honor during the event Saturday at Coyote Point in San Mateo. They started with a fundraising goal of $10,000 and already have raised $17,240 as of Monday morning. (Get more details on the walk at alsagoldenwest.org)
Eastland said she feels fortunate to have grown up with two selfless, nurturing parents like her dad and
her mom, Sherri McNeil. “They have cared for me through the good and the bad, and it is second nature to do the same for them,” she said. “ALS has thrown a lot of new realities at us and I want to do anything I can to support my dad through this.”
IRONIC IN ANY LANGUAGE >> The third annual Irish Arts and Writers Festival in Los Gatos doesn’t even start until later this week, but it’s already survived one major bump on the road. Melatu Uche Okorie, a Nigerian-born author who sought asylum in Ireland more than a decade ago, almost couldn’t attend the festival because her visa application was initially rejected. According to a festival spokeswoman, the reasons given were that her name was incorrectly spelled on some records and she was deemed a “flight risk,” even though she’s working on her doctorate at Trinity College in Dublin.
A visa was finally approved after letters were procured from the festival, the Irish consulate, her publisher and her professors. The irony? Okorie is scheduled to speak on a festival panel Sunday about refugees and immigration. Something tells me she’s got a new story to tell.
The festival’s opening night reception takes place Friday at the Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, and it continues with panels, programs and entertainment including Irish music and dance at various locales around Los Gatos through Sunday. Get tickets and more information at irishwriterslosgatos.com.
HEART WALK MAKES A CHANGE: MORE THAN 3,000 PEOPLE ARE EXPECTED TO TAKE PART IN THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCATION’S HEART WALK ON SATURDAY. BUT IF YOU WANT TO CHEER THEM ON, MAKE SURE YOU’RE HEADED TO THE RIGHT PLACE >> After many years at Kelley Park, this year’s walk will take place at Almaden Lake Park in San Jose.
The 5K walk, the signature event for the Silicon Valley chapter’s Healthy for Good campaign, starts at 8:30 a.m. You can still register at www.heart.org.