From the President
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Hope is one of the most powerful emotions that people have.
Those who have hope understand that it is greater than wishes and expectations. Hope is a state of being that transcends emotion and intellect. Hope is a calm and prescient place born not of blind faith, but from knowledge and trust.
There are many stories of hope, stories of people who inspire one another, who touch each other with moments that allow them to carry on. The MS Hope Award recognizes an individual who has instilled great hope in people whose lives have been changed by multiple sclerosis.
At the recent MileStones Gala, our Chapter presented the MS Hope Award to Phyl Rubin, of Bernie & Phyl’s Furniture, for her commitment to generating resources to help create a world free of multiple sclerosis.
Like many who have MS, Phyl chose to keep her MS a private family matter for nearly 40 years. But now, she and her family have decided that the time is right to not only share Phyl’s story of living with MS, but to commit themselves to the movement to create a world free of multiple sclerosis.
The MileStones Gala was a tremendous success because of Phyl’s and Bernie’s generosity and kind spirit, and their infectious good nature that motivates everyone in their circle to do as much as they can to support our mission.
Hope for people with MS doesn’t just come from the latest medical research in prevention, treatment, and cure. Even with the exciting recent developments in MS genetics and gender and nervous system repair and protection and pediatric MS, plus the continued advancement of new and better treatments like the coming generation of oral medications, hope is still something that comes from the heart.
When someone with a heart as big as Phyl Rubin enters your life, as she has ours, you feel that confidence and trust that comes from knowing they are here to help, and they won’t go home until the job is done.
In my book, Phyl Rubin and the many others with MS who commit themselves to our Chapter and to the movement to create a world free of MS are tremendous beacons of hope. They represent what people with MS can achieve and what it means to be a partner, working tirelessly side by side. Thank you all for moving us forward.
MileStones Gala 2010, Honoring Phyl Rubin with the MS Hope Award
Presented by WHDH 7NBC & CW56
(From left to right): MileStones Host and Chapter Trustee Anthony Everett of WCVB TV5, Chapter President Arlyn White, MileStones Co-Chair and Chapter Trustee Doug Bryant, Michelle Pepe (née Rubin), Bernie Rubin, Phyl Rubin, MileStones Co-Chair Larry Rubin, Rob Rubin, National MS Society CEO Joyce Nelson, Chapter Chairman Eli Lipcon.
Phyllis Rubin, recipient of the MS Hope Award, with husband, Bernie, at MileStones Gala 2010
“We Keep Moving” Hits the Road
Watch this “reality road show” today!
A team of three artists travelled across America to tell the unique and inspiring stories of 10 individuals whose lives are affected by MS. Each member of the team, Kate Milliken, Amelia Davis and Jason DaSilva, lives with MS.
Thirty finalists were chosen by a selection committee, made up of people with MS, volunteers and Society staff, out of more than 800 story submissions. Each week until May 13, you voted for one of three finalists at wekeepmoving.org. The team then visited the winner to tell his or her story through video and photos, which is now posted weekly on the We Keep Moving site.
Start moving now at wekeepmoving.org.
World-Wide Survey on Jobs and MS
Over 6,000 people worldwide in 10 languages have already taken the MSIF survey on employment and MS. Add your voice at bit.ly/WorldMSDay_WorkSurvey.
The results, which will shed much-needed light on how MS impacts employment was released on World MS Day, May 26 and can be found at the Multiple Sclerosis International Federation website. This year marks the second World MS Day, which was established by the Multiple Sclerosis International Federation, or MSIF, and its 42 member societies to raise awareness and unite individuals and organizations in the global MS movement. MS affects an estimated 2.1 million people worldwide.
Keep up with what’s going on around the world at worldmsday.org, where you can join the group on Facebook or follow on Twitter.
Tune In to “MS from A to Z” Online
Nationwide access to these once-a-month episodes is available at researchchannel.org (search for “MS from A to Z”). The first episode, aired February 2nd, featured an overview of the series by Dr. George Kraft, principal investigator at the University of Washington Multiple Sclerosis Rehabilitation Research and Training Center.
Episodes can be watched online at any time, or listened to as a downloaded MP3 file, so there’s really no reason to miss a single one.
Plan to tune in. This online series is produced by the University of Washington.