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Middletown Woman A Triple Threat For MS

March 5, 2015

Team Ellin at Muck Fest MS.

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – Before Middletown resident Christen Roy was born, her mother began a battle against a disease with no cure. Nearly three decades later, Roy has found her own ways to pick up where her mother left off and continue the fight in her memory.

“My mother, Ellin, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when she was 22 years old and 3 months pregnant with my older sister,” said Roy. “After many hard years of fighting, she lost her battle with MS in 1988 at the age of 39 when I was only 14.”

Even though Roy lost her mother at a young age, it is clear that she has not let the memory of her mother’s struggle fade. In fact, she is one of a select few National MS Society, Connecticut Chapter, fundraisers who participate in not one or even two annual events, but three.

“As I got older and started a family of my own I decided I wanted to get involved in raising money to help families that need support,” recalled Roy, now a married mother of two. “So, in 2006, my sister, Meghan Fallon, and I completed our first Walk MS together in Cheshire. Once we started and saw how many people were out there supporting the cause, that was it – we knew we were going to keep going every year to honor our mother.”

Beginning in 2009, Roy shared her team page with friends and family via Facebook and the team and donations began to take off. Roy led the team for several years, raising more than $6,000 for the National MS Society, Connecticut Chapter, by 2012. Then, in 2013, she learned of another challenge she and her team could take on.

Roy had come across the Boston-based Muck Fest MS, a fun mud and obstacle 5K filled with mountains of mud and outrageous obstacles that will spin, swing, and fling participants up, down, and sideways.

“My sister and I got a team of eight together and made the drive to Boston and had a blast completing the course,” she said, noting that they were quick to return the following year despite heavy rain and temperatures in the 40s. “It was unlike anything we had done before and was certainly more difficult, but we were running alongside people living with MS so we knew we had to keep going.”

More than 6,300 Connecticut residents are affected by multiple sclerosis, a potentially debilitating disease affecting the central nervous system. The cause is unknown. Symptoms can include, among other things, numbness in the limbs, difficulties with vision and speech, stiffness, loss of mobility and, in some more severe cases, total paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot be predicted.

As if her annual participation in both Walk MS and MuckFest MS were not enough, when Roy learned of yet another event, she signed on.

“I had recently gotten into running and kept seeing all the different types of charity runs and 5Ks,” she said. “I knew I had to accept this challenge, too.”

In October 2013, Roy and a close friend participated in the Spooktacular Run at Rentschler Field. Roy ran it again in October of 2014 as the sole member of Team Ellin, but was supported and cheered on by her husband and sons.

“We already have team pages created for the Walk MS and MuckFest MS for 2015,” shared Roy, who to date has led Team Ellin in raising more than $11,000. “We’ve started fundraising and are ready for April to get here.”

The 2015 Walk MS, presented by Travelers, will be held Saturday, April 18, in Enfield, Fairfield and Madison, and Sunday, April 19, in Cheshire, Waterford and West Hartford. Participants can also join Walk MS on Saturday, April 25, in East Hartford and Sunday, April 26, in Litchfield, Simsbury, Stamford and West Haven.

Each walk site will feature 2.5- and 5-mile fully-accessible routes. At this year’s event, participants will enjoy lunch provided by Coca Cola and Subway. The sites will also feature a Mission Station- a new and exciting way for walkers to get involved, get information, earn rewards and gather some team spirit for the walk.

The Boston-based MuckFest MS is scheduled to take place on Saturday, April 25, and Sunday, April 26.

Funds raised at chapter events, such as Walk MS, MuckFest MS and Run MS, ensure ongoing scientific research to find a cure and provide for the continuation of vital programs and services offered by the chapter to Connecticut residents affected by MS.

“Participating in the events is the least we can do to help raise awareness and funds to help those still battling this disease,” said Roy. “We've seen some strong people that have MS participating at all of these events. If they can make the effort to walk or run, we have no excuse not to try to do the same. We need a cure for MS and any small part we can do to help, we’ll do.”

For more information on fundraising events and opportunities provided by the National MS Society, Connecticut Chapter, visit www.ctfightsMS.org.

About the Connecticut-Rhode Island Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society

The Connecticut Chapter strives to provide knowledge and assistance to help people with MS and their families maintain the highest possible quality of life. These goals are achieved through vital national and local programs.

About Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. Symptoms range from numbness and tingling to blindness and paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot yet be predicted, but advances in research and treatment are leading to better understanding and moving us closer to a world free of MS. Most people with MS are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, with at least two to three times more women than men being diagnosed with the disease. MS affects more than 2.3 million people worldwide.

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