Join the Movement
MS walk to take place May 3
by TIMOTHY CHIPP Reporter

Western New York has the second highest percentage of multiple sclerosis patients in the nation, with the first being Seattle.

To help raise awareness and funding for a cure, the 20th annual Multiple Sclerosis Walk will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, May 3, at Dunn Tire Park at the intersection of Swan and Washington streets.

"It's exciting that we're coming up on our 20th year," said Jennifer Newman, director of development at the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Upstate New York Chapter.

The walk is the kickoff event for the entire chapter, which encompasses 50 counties in New York State and features 21 walk sites.

Buffalo is the largest walk site for the chapter, which also hosts walks in Lockport, Jamestown, Wellsville, Dunkirk and Batavia.

There are three walking routes - one-mile, three-mile and five-mile courses, Newman said.

"The one mile is completely accessible for anybody in a wheelchair or a walker or anything like that," Newman said, adding that the three- and five-mile courses are not 100 percent accessible to individuals with a handicap because of curb cuts.

Dunn Tire Park's plaza may be empty now, but it will be filled with walkers for the 20th annual MS Walk, which will begin with registration at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 3. There will be plenty of tents set up, with food, drink and fun available for families and individuals who wish to participate. Below, Walkers partaking in the Multiple Sclerosis Walk will be treated to great views of the City of Buffalo, including sites from the Erie Basin Marina and City Hall. The architecture of Buffalo is better to view when walking, not driving by at 30 mph, said Jennifer Newman, director of development for the Upstate New York Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Photo by Timothy Chipp

Multiple sclerosis is a degenerative disease that attacks the central nervous system, most notably the brain, and can cause symptoms of numbness, loss of vision and muscle immobility. It is incurable. Doctors often diagnose patients between the ages of 20 and 50.

But symptoms are inconsistent from individual to individual, making MS one of the most unpredictable diseases in the medical community, Newman said. It can affect the part of the brain controlling sight in one person and the balance centers of another.

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Although MS is considered a "rare" disease, there are more than 4,000 cases of the disease in the Buffalo area.

"It's a shocking number," Newman said. "There's all sorts of speculation. There's speculation that has to do with where we are in the world. There's speculation on industry, there's speculation on weather, there's speculation on the amount of sunlight we get, there's speculation on it being genetic. There's speculation on six or seven other elements that are sort of all over the place."

The problem is that no one can figure out the real cause of the disease, she said.

That's why walks like this need to happen, to raise funds for research and support, she said. Of the proceeds generated, 62 percent is invested in the community for support groups and local assistance for those affected and their families. Approximately 38 percent will be sent to the national organization for investment in research and funding of national programs.

"Of that 38 percent we send back to national, the majority of it comes back here locally again to support the Jacobs Neurological Institute," Newman said, emphasizing that even the nationally allocated money finds its way back to the area.

There are four types of the disease, with 85 percent of those afflicted suffering from a relapsing and remitting version. This type affects the individual with a gradual onset of symptoms and in outbreak-type relapses, with drugs available to decrease the effects, she said.

Others, such as comedian Richard Pryor, suffer from different types of the disease, where the onset isn't gradual and it can take a year or two for the disease to go from no symptoms to full-blown MS, she said.

The organizers of the walk are estimating that 2,000 people will participate in the Buffalo walk and hope to raise about $200,000. Overall, approximately $1.5 million is expected to be generated from all 21 walk sites, and about 8,000 walkers are expected to participate.

There is still time to sign up for the Buffalo walk, Newman said, noting that registration is accepted until the day of the event.

"The only thing is, you have to raise $125 for a T-shirt, which most people set as their minimum," Newman said. "We have people that show up the day of the event, charge $125 to their credit card and move on."

"And, no, $125 isn't the minimum to walk. People can show up and donate whatever they feel like," she said, adding that volunteering opportunities are still available to those who do not wish to participate in the actual walk.

"We like to get our volunteers together a few days before the event," she said. "But there are always walk-on volunteers."

In previous years, Buffalo Bills special teams star Josh Stamer has been associated with the event. But Stamer recently signed a free-agent contract with Tennessee and won't be participating this year.

The organizers have made an attempt to contact Lee Evans, but the Bills' wide receiver has not confirmed his involvement.

The event begins at 9 a.m. with registration, while the walk will start at 10:15 a.m. There will be food and beverages available from various sponsors after the walk.

For more information on the walk in Buffalo or any other location, visit www. msupstateny. org.