Sunday, August 9, 2015

Help me expand my fight against Multiple Sclerosis!


I send out a lot of fundraising messages, but there is no way I can reach across every friend, contact, and colleague.  Please help me expand this fight.  Enlisting more support may not be fair, but neither is MS.
Whatever it takes...

Fight; that is all I want to do. 

I grew up REFINING the tools I would need to fight and strive for my goals.  My West Point and Army legacy taught me HOW to fight.  Today, I am constantly reminded WHY my fight needs to go on.

That was the ideal guiding me through Oregon Chapter’s 2015 Bike MS on August 1-2.    This is my after-action report: http://neverstopneverquit.blogspot.com/2015/08/bike-ms-2015-boom.html.


My fundraising goal this year is $75,000.
$75k will launch the MS research career of a promising postdoctoral fellow.  Today, there is one such fellow at Oregon Health & Science University testing thyroid hormone-like drugs to see if they will improve myelin repair and to determine their potential for development as a treatment for MS.

This is what I need!  Please help me get closer to these goals with a donation to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in support of 2015 BikeMS. 

My Multiple Sclerosis fight is now in its 16th year.  At the end of 2015 I will mark a major milestone as I complete a two-year clinical trial.  The goal of the trial is to find a treatment, if not the cure, for Secondary Progressive MS.  I have spent in excess of three years as part of this study, looking to stem the progression of this disease’s advanced stages.  Fighting back is the only option.  If this research doesn’t lead to a breakthrough, I will charge ahead in support of another chance.

My arms and hands are failing; my voice is weak; my days upright and mobile are fading.  My fight, however, remains strong.  A World Free of MS is still the vision.  The new cases of multiple sclerosis diagnosed daily remind us that we don’t yet have a cure.  The rapid worsening of my own disability is a reminder of the paramount challenges for all affected by MS.

We will win this fight.  My goals still remain set on the recovery and rehab I’ll need to dance with my daughter, Eleanor, again.  If I don’t reach that target, I’ll continue fighting to ensure her generation never has to hear the words “YOU HAVE MS”.

Last year’s efforts for BikeMS were a smashing success!  Our fundraising under Eleanor powered the Oregon chapter with nearly $57k.  I’m looking forward to updating you on our progress throughout: 
•             Read my stories at www.neverstopneverquit.blogspot.com
•             Keep following our progress and excitement at www.neverstopneverquit.com
•             Join our Facebook efforts at www.facebook.com/groups/TeamAmulet

The fight is not over and it won’t be over until a cure is found.
It will never stop…nor will we
It will never quit…nor will we
This is why we ride!

Thank you for all of your support and motivation.

Never Stop…Never Quit...
  Kevin



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