Mar 11, 2009
MS Awareness Week
Carla Koss
As individual Americans, we seem to be scratching our heads over all that needs to be done in the world. But as Delawareans, we have an opportunity to scratch one item off the overwhelming list of things to do: We can end the devastating effects of multiple sclerosis.
To promote the effort, the Delaware Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society will be part of a nationwide campaign called “MS Awareness Week.” Beginning on Monday, March 2, and running through Friday, March 6, the campaign features events and campaigns that promote MS advocacy, participation in Walk MS and Bike MS, and informational outlets for the chapter’s programs and services.
MS advocacy
On March 5, Delaware Lieutenant Governor Matt Denn and County Executive Chris Coons will officiate an MS Awareness Day rally. After Denn proclaims the week of March 2–6, 2009, as “Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week,” Coons will present a tribute to the statewide network of MS advocates. Also during the week, the Delaware Chapter will orchestrate a letter-to-the-editor–writing campaign focusing on health-care reform and, for increasing MS awareness, launch the chapter’s official Facebook page.
Delaware Chapter events
The Delaware Chapter events coordinators have lined up a number of promotions, all aimed at educating and organizing the community while fundraising for MS research and the programs and services needed by more than 1,500 Delawareans with MS and their families. On March 2, Wine4Women kicks off MS Awareness Week with a wine-tasting event at the Deep Blue Bar & Grill from 5:30–7:30 P.M. The cost to attend is $25 in advance ($30 at the door), and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the Delaware Chapter.
A number of rallies are scheduled to help promote the 2009 Walk MS season. On March 3, a rally for the participants of Walk MS: Twilight at Heritage Shores takes place from 2:00–3:30 P.M. at the clubhouse at Heritage Shores in Bridgeville. And on March 5, a rally is set for the participants of Walk MS: Wilmington Riverfront and Walk MS: University of Delaware at the Hearts & Minds Cinema in Wilmington from 5:30–7:30 P.M. Special deliveries featuring training kits for Walk MS team captains will be delivered while incentives and prizes are offered to encourage walker recruitment and fundraising.
And the one-day Bike MS: Crankin’ for a Cure—the chapter’s warm-up for Bike to the Bay—will also be promoted through online discounts for early registrants. For more information about chapter events, call (302) 655-5610. Or visit www.delawarewalk.org or www.crankin4acure.org.
Delaware Chapter programs and services
During MS Awareness Week, the programs side of the Delaware Chapter will focus on the face of MS in the First State—with special deliveries throughout the state. Folks living with MS in long-term-care facilities will receive personal-care packages while MS health-care professionals will receive up-to-date information packets. On March 4, a community education program will take place at 12:00 noon at the CHEERS Community Center in Long Neck. For more information about chapter programs and services, call (302) 655-5610.
About multiple sclerosis
Every hour in the United States, someone is newly diagnosed with MS. Most are diagnosed between the ages of 20 and 50, but among the more than 1,500 Delawareans with MS is a boy who will be 10 in May. MS affects more than 400,000 people nationwide, and more than twice as many women are diagnosed as men.
Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable, often-disabling disease of the central nervous system that interrupts the flow of information from the brain to the body. Symptoms range from tingling and numbness in the limbs to blindness and paralysis. In other words, MS stops people from moving.
Although the progress, severity, and specific symptoms of MS cannot be predicted, advances in research and treatment are moving us closer to a world free of MS. Studies show that early and ongoing treatment with an FDA-approved therapy can reduce future disease activity and improve the quality of life for many people with MS.
About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
The National Multiple Sclerosis Society is a collective of passionate individuals who are
• moving together to create a world free of MS.
• moving research forward by relentlessly pursuing prevention, treatment, and a cure.
• moving to reach out and respond to individuals, families, and communities living with MS.
• moving politicians and legislation to champion the needs of people with MS through activism, advocacy, and influence.
• moving to raise $1.25 billion by 2010 to help create a world free of MS.
• moving to mobilize the millions of people who want to do something about MS now.
To this end, the National MS Society funds more MS research, provides more services to people with MS, offers more professional education, and furthers more advocacy efforts than any other MS organization in the world. Through a 50-state network of chapters—including the Delaware Chapter—the Society addresses the challenges of living with the disease.
To learn more, call (302) 655-5610. Or visit www.MSdelaware.org.