More than 50 people came out Saturday, Oct. 14, to Blue Springs Elementary School to participate in the Walk to Defeat ALS. This is the third year for the event which raises money for the North Alabama Chapter of the ALS Association.

The walk at Blue Springs was in honor of Thad Hebbe, who was diagnosed in 2021 with ALS.

ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. There is no cure for ALS but the National Walk to Defeat ALS events raise money for ongoing research.

“This is the third year we’ve done the walk and we do it for Thad Hebbe. He’s been my best friend since fifth grade. He was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s Disease and we just started having the walk for him,” participant Jason Black said.

Black said the walk was a great community event and thanked Morrell Engineering for sponsoring this year’s walk. Hebbe participated in the walk and completed 5 laps around the track for 1.25 miles.

ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. There is no cure for ALS but the National Walk to Defeat ALS events raise money for ongoing research.

According to the ALS Association, every 90 minutes a person in this country is diagnosed with ALS and every 90 minutes another person will lose their battle against this disease. ALS occurs throughout the world with no racial, ethnic or socioeconomic boundaries. It is a “progressive, fatal neuromuscular disease that slowly robs the body of its ability to walk, speak, swallow and breathe.” The life expectancy of a person with ALS averages two to five years from the time of diagnosis.