ALS patients and their families received a big boost this week when the University of Michigan’s Comprehensive ALS Clinic was selected as one of the six local, non-profit beneficiaries that will receive proceeds from the 2017 Big House 5K Trail to the Victors Presented by Toyota.
The race will be held at 8:30 a.m. Sunday, April 9, 2017, starting near the Stephen M. Ross Athletic Complex and ending at the 50-yard-line inside Michigan Stadium.
“It is a genuine honor to be included in this outstanding community event,” said ALS Clinic Director Stephen A. Goutman, MD. “It means so much to our patients and their families to know that the Michigan Athletic family stands firmly behind our efforts, and the proceeds from this race will go a long way toward providing better care for ALS patients. Everyone wins.”
The race’s six local non-profit beneficiaries will receive $12 from each registration, plus any additional proceeds after race expenses. In 2016, $115,000 was donated to the race’s charity beneficiaries.
“This is such exciting news for our ALS patients,” said Eva L. Feldman, MD, PhD, the Clinic’s Director of Research. “Better patient care is the cornerstone of the U-M ALS Clinic, and it makes our extensive research effort possible. And of course our research aims to not only improve the lives of ALS patients, but to ultimately cure the disease.”
In addition to the University of Michigan’s Comprehensive ALS Clinic, recipients include: The Ann Arbor Summer Festival, Avalon Housing, the Buddy to Buddy Volunteer Veteran program, the Hands Across the Water child placement agency, and the Michigan Ovarian Cancer Alliance.
Race sponsors include Toyota, the University of Michigan Credit Union, Absopure, and Wolverine Human Services.
The University of Michigan Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Clinic, an ALSA certified center for more than two decades, is committed to providing compassionate care to patients with ALS. Research has shown that active, aggressive management of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis enhances patient survival, and more importantly quality of life, and that’s exactly what we do in the University of Michigan’s Multidisciplinary ALS Clinic. The U-M multidisciplinary team assesses the needs of each patient and develops an individualized care plan that addresses every step of the ALS journey. Once a patient is diagnosed with ALS, our team immediately begins its work implementing a wide array of clinical services designed to assist families and maximize patient health and function, including physical, occupational and respiratory therapy, dietary counseling, social work and a chair specialist.
To register for the 2017 Big House 5K Trail to the Victors Present by Toyota, please visit http://www.mgoblue.com/bighouse5k/
