As you know, the “Ice Bucket Challenge,” an initiative started to raise awareness and funds to help strike out ALS, has been sweeping the globe and has passed through the Brewers Clubhouse along the way.
Ryan Braun completed the challenge last Saturday and in turn tagged teammates Jonathan Lucroy, Kyle Lohse, and Carlos Gomez. Padres Manager Bud Black issued the challenge to Brewers Manager Ron Roenicke, along with Angels Manager Mike Scioscia, and Rays Manager Joe Maddon and Ron completed the challenge yesterday.
And it continues to spread, not only in the Clubhouse, but throughout the organization.
Last week, we announced that Brewers Community Foundation donated $5000 to ALSA Wisconsin on behalf of the Brewers and today, both Brewers Director of Media Relations, Mike Vassallo, and I completed challenges issued to us personally and issued challenges of our own:
But the biggest challenge we can issue is to simply join us in fighting ALS, whether you get wet or not.
ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Recently, the disease has been gaining a LOT of attention from this Ice Bucket Challenge, started by ALS patients Pete Frates and Pat Quinn to help raise money and awareness for the disease.
According to The Wall Street Journal, as of Thursday, the ALS Association had raised $7.6 million in donations in two weeks, compared with $1.4 million raised during the same two-week period last year. In addition, over 145,900 new donors have stepped up to the plate to help strike out ALS.
Visit ALSA.org to do your part.
-Cait
JohnandCait@brewers.com
