MAKING A DIFFERENCE
For most of us, life is made up of moments. We remember and keep with us these moments as significant milestones in our lives.
I can remember for example the worst moment of my life. I spent 5 years building an airplane. When it was finally finished I took it to the local airport for its maiden flight. This was a culmination of a dream that started when I was a young boy fascinated by airplanes. The weather forecast was not good and I had to wait for a few days before it would be acceptable for the first flight. A tornado hit the airport on the 4th day and collapsed 6 hangers; my airplane was inside one of them. I remember this day like it was yesterday. The dream, the years and countless hours of work all gone in an instant. My reaction was like most; why me? What could I have possibly done to deserve this? Looking back now, I can say that I was lucky, yes that's right, lucky. I still had something that could be rebuilt and made whole again. It is just a thing, it can always be "fixed". After two years of doing just that, I rebuilt it and have enjoyed countless hours of enjoyment and satisfaction flying it over the years.
For some, life's moments can be more than just inconveniences, but rather life-changing. My wife Sara can define the worst moment of her life as being the day she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Imagine being told; You have MS and as of yet there is no cure. How do you handle a moment like that?
Multiple Sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system which interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Every hour in the United States, someone is newly diagnosed with the disease. Symptoms range from reduced or lost mobility to numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men having the disease. MS affects more than 400,000 people in the United States and over 2.1 million worldwide. More than 11,000 people in Wisconsin live with MS. That is one in every 500 Wisconsinites.
Advances in research are moving us closer to stopping the disease, restoring function and ending MS forever. Moreover, MS has moved from an untreatable disease in 1993 to a treatable one today for the vast majority of people now diagnosed, thanks to the growing public support spurring exciting research breakthroughs. This is a very encouraging time if your have MS or know someone who lives with the disease because the first oral therapies that treat MS and manage MS symptoms are now available for those with relapsing forms of the disease. With more than a dozen therapies moving through the pipeline that hold promise of new and improved treatments for MS, the anticipation is growing. A cure is within our reach. Therefore, advancing MS research is ever more important.
Since its inception in 1946, the MS Society has invested more than $600 million in biomedical research to solve the puzzle of MS. Last year alone, the national office and 50 individual state chapters, devoted over $159 million to programs that enhanced more than one million lives. But as of yet, there is NO CURE for this debilitating disease. Our only hope for a cure is through research, and the only thing that drives research is money; lots and lots of money. Someday we will find a cure for this disease. I can only hope that it will not be too late for Sara. She needs a miracle, and she needs it soon!
YOU can make a difference in the lives of people with MS. On August 4th & 5th, 2018, Sara and I will be riding our recumbent tandem in our 14th MS-150 Best Dam Bike Tour. This is a 2 day event that brings together over 1700 cyclists to "RIDE FOR A CURE". Since its inception, the MS-150 has raised more than $29 million for MS research and educational support programs. This is Why We Ride!
So what are you waiting for? Dust off that bicycle and sign up to ride. You don't have to feel alone, as you can join our team "MS SUCKS - We ride for BUCKS". If you can not ride, then help us achieve our fundraising goal of $10,000 by mailing us a pledge or donating on-line. Either way, you can help us work towards the miracle that Sara and thousands like her need to find a cure for this terrible disease before it is too late. If I could give the airplane that I built - lost - and rebuilt again to someone in exchange for a cure for MS, I would do it in a heartbeat. I can always build another airplane, but I can not "fix" the one person who is my life partner and best friend.
I long for the moment that I can say; I helped find a cure for MS. I would be honored to have you join me in that moment!
