For 35 years, Marianne Green, age 70, has dedicated each and every Monday to helping out at the National MS Society, Minnesota Chapter office. As a person who lives with the effects of multiple sclerosis, Marianne has always believed it’s important to do whatever she can to support the society’s work to end the disease. When she first started volunteering in 1974, there were no disease-modifying treatments available and Minnesota Bike MS rides didn’t even exist. Roughly 1,800 Mondays and three office buildings later — the movement to end MS has made great strides, and Marianne has been a part of it every step of the way. As a chapter volunteer, Marianne answers phones to ensure people affected by MS get the information and help they need. She also makes thank-you calls to people who have made memorial gifts to the society.
( also a Hall of Fame recipient in the Researcher category)
Dr. McFarland is a neurologist, researcher, chief of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Neuroimmunology Branch, and leader in the MS movement. Over the past 35 years, he has dedicated his career to MS research and countless hours to the National MS Society. Dr. McFarland is internationally known for his groundbreaking MS research into genetic components, immune mechanisms, and using MRI scans to monitor disease course. He has published 250 papers and in 1998 received the Dystel Prize. At NIH, he oversees clinical research and mentors rising researchers. Dr. McFarland has been an active member and chair of numerous Society committees and task forces involving research, clinical trials, and pediatric MS. After years of service on the Society’s Board of Directors, he is an Honorary Life Director. Locally, Dr. McFarland served on the National Capital Chapter’s Board of Trustees and Ethics Committee. He presents at local client education programs and has helped with grassroots media outreach to educate the general public. Dr. McFarland serves as chair of the Chapter’s Clinical Advisory Committee (CAC). Under his leadership, the CAC oversees the Chapter’s medically related programs, guides involvement with D.C.’s health care community, facilitates networking, and organizes annual Charcot Lectures.
Dorothy Cooper, much like Sylvia Lawry was a visionary. In the early 1970’s Burt and Dorothy Cooper along with Oscar and Marion Dystel decided to expand the Westchester chapter when their respective children were diagnosed with MS. They co-founded the Southern New York Chapter of the National MS Society, which covered the Hudson Valley, to educate and help serve the MS community in Westchester and its surrounding counties.
Dorothy is a woman of many accomplishments. While she has been a resident of Westchester County for more than 50 years, she spent many of those years commuting to her art studio in Manhattan where she refined her craft. Her sculptures can be found in many private collections today.
To this day, she continues to support the efforts of our chapter and its mission to those affected with this disease. She is a lifetime trustee on the board of the SNY chapter. Her stature in the community has engaged many others to join our movement. Dorothy's daughter, Lisa Brettschneider, is following in her mother's footsteps and serves on the Women on the Move committee.