Mpls. Dance Co. Shows There Are No Boundaries In Ballet

April 4, 2011

Mpls. Dance Co. Shows There Are No Boundaries In Ballet

CBS Minnesota (WCCO) | April 2, 2011 | By Cassie Bonstrom

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — In a small studio in Minneapolis, Leah Nelson is helping her students master a bourrée turn. But really, she’s teaching them much more than ballet moves. She’s teaching the girls, who all use power wheelchairs, that they can be dancers.

“I like to move to the music,” said Mary Kate Bigelow of Rosemount. “It’s always been my dream.

”The girls taking one of the classes at Young Dance have various types of a neuromuscular disease called Spinal Muscular Atrophy, or SMA. Their cognitive skills are unaffected, but their muscles are weak and their bodies fragile.

For many of them, it’s their first formal dance class. And while they can’t dance on their feet, they can use their power chairs to do the same moves.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Inspiration, Minnesota, sports, United States | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

Bridge Run: For some, finishing the race is symbolic of overcoming other obstacles in life

April 1, 2011

Bridge Run: For some, finishing the race is symbolic of overcoming other obstacles in life

The Post and Courier | April 1, 2011 | By David Quick

They come from near and far. This pilgrimage is not for food, or fashion, or history, or art.

During this annual rite of spring since 1978, some tackle this obstacle of steep concrete to prove they have overcome their own obstacles.

Obesity. Cancer. An organ transplant. The loss of a loved one. The loss of a job. The loss of a limb.

They converge on a mission: to finish.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Fundraiser, South Carolina, United States | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

Karen Wheeler doesn’t let muscular dystrophy curtail her artistry

April 1, 2011

Karen Wheeler doesn’t let muscular dystrophy curtail her artistry

Las Vegas Review-Journal | March 31, 2011 | By Steve Bornfeld

What strikes you about her prison is how utterly pointless a prison can be.

It’s made of her body. It’s incapable of containing her.

This inmate has wings.

“The doctor told my parents I wouldn’t live past a year,” says Henderson artist Karen Wheeler, 55, born in Kansas with spinal muscular atrophy, a form of muscular dystrophy. “Of course, the doctor died. Hahahaha!”

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Inspiration, Nevada, United States | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

5-Year-Old MDA Goodwill Ambassador’s Family Car Stolen

April 1, 2011

5-Year-Old MDA Goodwill Ambassador’s Family Car Stolen

News9.com | March 31, 2011 | By Darren Brown

OKLAHOMA CITY — A 5-year-old girl has helped raise awareness and money for MDA, but now a crime has her family wondering how they’ll get her to doctor appointments for her own life-altering disease, Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

Teresa Johnson’s daily routine was severely disrupted Wednesday, but she almost didn’t notice it at all. She took her oldest daughter to school using her mother’s vehicle and came back home as usual. It was only when she went to pick her daughter up that afternoon that she noticed something was missing.

“And lo and behold, my car is gone. And come to find out, it had been missing all day,” Johnson said. “I didn’t know to look for my car to be missing. I wouldn’t expect it to be missing.”

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | MDA, Oklahoma, United States | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

Ranger family seeks treatment for Spinal Muscular Atrophy

April 1, 2011

Ranger family seeks treatment for Spinal Muscular Atrophy

The Bayonet | March 30, 2011 | By Cheryl Rodewig

FORT BENNING, Ga. – Ever heard of Spinal Muscular Atrophy?

Neither had Staff Sgt. Kanaan and Kari Merriken a little more than a year ago.

Their son, Caleb, was born June 3, 2008 – “the best day of my life,” Kari said.

“The first few months of his life were relatively normal,” she said. “He rolled over at 12 weeks. He was able to sit up at 5 months. He crawled at 8-and-a-half months.”

But when he wasn’t walking at the 16-month mark, his doctor was concerned.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | FSMA, Fundraiser, Georgia, United States | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

This gang is ready to Walk and Roll

March 30, 2011

This gang is ready to Walk and Roll

The Charlotte Observer | March 31, 2011 | By Jessica Milicevic

Michael Gray Dougherty, known to friends and family as Gray, is a happy, independent 12-year-old boy.

He likes to play chess and Xbox, and he competes on the National Academic League team at Alexander Graham Middle School. He lives in Sharon Woods with his mom, Abbie, dad, Mike, and 8-year-old brother, Riley.

Gray also has a rare muscular disease: Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Diagnosed when he was 10 months old, Gray has limited voluntary muscle movement and has been in a power wheelchair since he was 2. Every five years, Gray graduates to a new wheelchair to fit his changing needs and size.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | FightSMA, FSMA, Fundraiser, Inspiration, North Carolina, United States | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

Bark in the Park charity effort launched in aid of baby Matthew Chad

March 28, 2011

Bark in the Park charity effort launched in aid of baby Matthew Chad

Evening Gazette | March 28, 2011 | By Lindsey Mussett

FOUR-LEGGED friends are taking the lead in raising vital cash for a children’s hospice in memory of a tot who spent time there before he died.

Butterwick House Children’s Hospice, in Stockton, launched its brand-new Bark in the Park event – a sponsored walk with a difference – as part of the new Matthew’s Memory Appeal.

Pooches of all shapes and sizes will take a three-mile walk in memory of baby Matthew Chad, who was cared for at the hospice before he died at just three months old in September 2004, after being diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Fundraiser, Support, Tribute, United Kingdom | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

DIY DNA tests tell couples about their unborn baby’s genetic disease risk

March 28, 2011

DIY DNA tests tell couples about their unborn baby’s genetic disease risk

Press Release | March 27, 2011

A new do-it-yourself DNA kit, set to be launched by an Australian company, will allow couples to find out if they could pass on a genetic disease to a baby.

In January, Sydney-based company Lumigenix, with laboratories in Melbourne and Los Angeles, began offering direct-to-consumer genetic testing of the risk of developing cancers, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other diseases.

It will release a pre-conception testing kit in six months, allowing expecting and prospective parents to find out if they possess genes that make them carriers of about 250 recessive genetic diseases, including cystic fibrosis, spinal muscular atrophy, Tay-Sachs disease and Bloom syndrome.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Australia, Carrier Screening, Press Release | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

Tributes to ‘absolutely remarkable girl’

March 28, 2011

Tributes to ‘absolutely remarkable girl’

Bournemouth Echo | March 27, 2011 | By James Morton

TRIBUTES have been paid to an inspirational teenager “who left a mark on everyone who came across her”.

The family of Natalie Keith, who died at home in Ensbury Park last week after a short illness, described the 14-year-old an “absolutely remarkable girl”.

Despite being born with spinal muscular atrophy, which left her wheelchair-bound throughout her life, Natalie was a typically bubbly, active teenager.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Inspiration, Tribute, United Kingdom | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

A New Best Friend for Metro Boy in Need

March 25, 2011

A New Best Friend for Metro Boy in Need

FOX (Kansas City) | March 24, 2011 | By Abby Eden

Vodpod videos no longer available.

A seven year-old metro boy with special needs from the Kansas City metro got a new canine companion for free today.

Charlie Sykora has Spinal Muscular Atrophy. His new canine companion will be able to help charlie with picking things up, alerting others if Charlie needs help, and even opening doors.

The free gift is a blessing for Charlie’s family.

Click HERE or on the image below to read more…

Leave a Comment » | Inspiration, Kansas, Service Dog, United States | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by stronwi

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »