Support Sharon's Fight Against ALS

I am a longtime friend and co-worker of Sharon, who is a 20+ year survivor of ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease. She is a vibrant, thoughtful and a wonderful friend to all who know her. Before the ALS, Sharon was active and athletic, being an avid walker and accomplished snow skier. She was always ready for her next and new challenging adventure. But, she never imagined her next challenge would be the fight of a lifetime against ALS. It was shortly after her diagnosis that Sharon became confined to the wheelchair for her mobility and soon after came the weakness of the muscles in her arms and hands which made it difficult, if not impossible to use them. She uses a computer and types with one finger. Sharon's speech is greatly compromised and communication is so very difficult, arduous and, at the very least, frustrating for her. Her ability to perform daily activities and tasks is profoundly diminished. Despite all of her limitations, Sharon has remained positive and has never lost that "engaging" smile and never-ending resilience.

The story of Sharon does not end there. Recently and abruptly she was left alone after a 46 year marriage. Sharon is now left alone to cope with new and difficult tasks. Just a few of those include, managing the household and bills and the task of hiring caretakers. Her caregiver costs are minimally $5400 per month. This does not include weekends. She relies on the caregivers to do her shopping, assist with meal preparation, take her to medical appointments, as well as, assist with personal and daily needs. Sharon's financial situation has been significantly reduced since living alone. The donations would greatly help her in the next few months to adapt to this new profound change in her life and pay for the care she requires.

Your donation would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much for your consideration and reading "Sharon's Story".