Mar 13, 2013
Meghan Freeman
St. Louis, Mo. (March 10, 2013) – Multiple sclerosis is a life altering disease that affects each person in a unique way. MS divides minds from bodies, pulls people from their lives and away from one another. MS is a destroyer of connection. But it is possible to build connections that MS cannot destroy. Our connections raise questions, find answers, bring knowledge and provide hope to the millions of people affected by MS worldwide. Every connection we make is a small victory, and together, our small victories will create larger ones that will help end MS forever. Every connection counts. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society and those living with MS in the Gateway Area Chapter are connecting with people across the nation during MS Awareness Week, March 11-17 to make their connections count.
The Society is a prominent force in forging connections among people with MS, their friends and family who raise awareness and funds; health professionals who treat those with MS; and, researchers who work to stop the disease, restore the function it takes, and end MS forever. In less than two decades, this has helped move MS from being an untreatable disease to one where there are at least nine treatment options for those with relapsing MS, the most common form of the disease, with even more new therapies speeding through the pipeline offering hope to people with all forms of the disease.
Visit www.gatewayMSsociety.org for other ways to get involved during and after MS Awareness Week. On this site, you will find links to How-To Guides, images, email signatures, Letter to the Editor and Letter to a Legislator templates, and other helpful documents. There is also a section that lists many ideas on how to take the initiative and further your awareness outreach. Ideas are separated by the amount of time it should take to complete a mentioned task – 5 minutes, 30 minutes, a few hours, or even more time. There is something for every person’s busy schedule!
This MS Awareness Week and beyond, find the power of connection and visit www.MSconnection.org. Just some of the opportunities you will find are:
- Every Connection Counts - share your story and connect with others at www.MSconnection.org. You can learn more about MS, upload your own photo and connection to share with others, download tools to spread MS awareness, or register to participate in Walk MS or Bike MS or another event near you. Whether you volunteer, bike, walk, advocate, educate, or support – every connection you create moves us closer to a world free of MS and shows your commitment to the MS movement.
- MS Connection – an online community for making meaningful connections – when, where and how you want. Visitors and members will learn about topics that are important to them, connect with others in the MS movement, find expert MS information and opinions at their fingertips, and join or start groups and discussions of their own.
- Other Opportunities to Connect – You can build connections, view and share images, video, and stories about your connections on the Society’s Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/nationalMSsociety. If you tweet you can spread the word using the #MSconnection hash tag.
Supporting this MS Awareness building effort is a year-round MS Awareness Public Service education campaign:
- Public Awareness Campaign - a multi-channel Public Service Awareness Campaign: MS Kills Connection > < Connection Kills MS features real people living with the effects of MS. Included in the campaign are Meredith Vieira and Richard Cohen as well as Noah”40” Shebib, the charismatic 28-year old producer and song writer who is a major contributing force to the rapper Drake’s meteoric rise to fame. Society PSAs will be spotlighted free on three mega-electronic billboards in Times Square during MS Awareness Week. The unique and powerful campaign was developed pro-bono in partnership with the renowned advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy. It was shot by the award-winning portrait photographer Martin Schoeller.
“People impacted by MS are connecting across the nation starting this week to combine their efforts, knowledge and hope in order to move us closer to a world free of multiple sclerosis, “ said Gateway Area Chapter President Phyllis Robsham.
About Multiple Sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system, interrupts 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 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 6,900 individuals here in the Gateway Area Chapter and more than 2.1 million people worldwide.
About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society
The National MS Society addresses the challenges of each person affected by MS. To fulfill this mission, the Society funds cutting-edge research, drives change through advocacy, facilitates professional education, collaborates with MS organizations around the world, and provides programs and services designed to help people with MS and their families move forward with their lives. In 2012 alone, the Society invested $43 million to support 350 research projects around the world while providing programs and services that assisted more than one million people. The Society is dedicated to achieving a world free of MS. Join the movement at www.nationalMSsociety.org. You may also contact your local Gateway Area Chapter at www.gatewayMSsociety.org or 314-781-9020.