Rockin’ It To End MS – David Osmond, The Second Osmond Generation
Whether performing on American Idol, rousing participants at a Women On the Move luncheon or recording a song that stirs your soul while getting your toes tapping, David Osmond has been inspiring people whether or not they personally have MS themselves since his MS diagnosis in 2006.
"I thought music was done for me," David said. Earlier in his MS journey, he couldn't walk, his breathing was so labored that he couldn't sing, and playing guitar was impossible. Fortunately, he has regained much of his function, but thinks about what it must have meant for an Osmond to ponder a life without music.
David is the son of Alan Osmond, the founder of the famed troupe of singing brothers, who also lives with MS. David credits a favorite saying of his father's — "I may have MS but MS does not have me" — with helping him get back on stage.
This year David received the Dorothy Corwin Spirit of Life Award at the Southern California Chapter’s 2010 Dinner of Champions. The award is now given annually to a person who exemplifies an optimistic and positive spirit in the face of MS. What makes this award particularly special is that David presented the first such award in 2000 to his father Alan Osmond, who now proudly did the same to honor his son a decade later. “Pain comes to all of us,” observed David, “suffering is optional.”
"I've been really blessed in so many ways. Music is my life, and I got the chance to share it once again with everyone who watches American Idol," David said. "Though my stay on this pressure cooker of a show was short lived, it still was a great opportunity for me. to let people know a little more about MS. It has also led to a whole new array of radio and TV opportunities, including The Today Show and Entertainment Tonight."
Like all people with MS, David knows there is no cure... yet. "It's something I deal with on a day to day basis, every minute," he said. "I kind of cover it up, but I still have MS. I constantly feel pain in my legs, but right now I'm able to stand, walk, and drive a car. I am truly blessed."
David understands that the symptoms that put him in a wheelchair once can reoccur at any time. "People ask me all the time, 'How you doing?' and I tell them, 'It's the best day of my life, because I'm still here, on this planet, still breathing.'"
Another reason to love David Osmond is his commitment to raising funds for the MS movement and other causes. David became president of a company called uPlejSM (pronounced “you pledge”) that pairs his commitment to the National MS Society with the multiplying power of social networking. Here’s David explaining how it works. Or visit David's Web site to learn more about him.
David is grateful that as he has learned more about MS, he has learned more about his father. And when he sees how many clinical trials are underway, he has reason to hope there will never be a third generation of Osmonds with MS.
"I know it's going to be a bright future," he said.
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uPlej is a service mark of Social Networx, LLC