The nonprofit ALS One is hosting a 4K walk/run at the Town Common as well as virtual this Sunday. Hopkinton resident Becky Mourey recently was diagnosed with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease) and will attend the event to help raise awareness and funds to fight the disease, which currently has no cure.
Mourey, a longtime music teacher (both in local schools and private lessons), started showing symptoms last June. While she continues to give music lessons, she has been unable to play the clarinet for more than six months, as “my atrophied hands and fingers will no longer allow it.”
Mourey notes that on average, people with ALS live 2-5 years from the date of onset. There are only a couple of therapies approved for use in the United States, and she hopes to help get more on the fast track to approval.
“Since my diagnosis I’ve been educating myself about my disease and I have been advocating for change nonstop,” Mourey explained, expressing frustration with governmental bureaucracy that has delayed other possible options.
“The saddest part for me and all of us living with ALS is how hard it is to be heard, to be seen, to get people outside of the ALS world to take pause and to imagine the unimaginable, and to act,” she stated.
For those attending in-person, the walk/run is scheduled to start at 11 a.m., and participants are asked to arrive at least 15 minutes early and meet at the gazebo. Registration is online at classy.org/event/lg4-day-virtual-4k-4als/e336553. Registrants receive a medal and can warmer, and can order a commemorative shirt.
The course passes the Boston Marathon starting line, a section of Main Street, the Town Common and the high school. Parking will be available around the common, on Main Street and at the high school.
Sunday’s event is a lead-up to June 2, when Major League Baseball will celebrate the inaugural Lou Gehrig Day to promote ALS awareness.
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