When you do the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge as a group, it’s safer on the ends. Arnie and Anne Polischuk (second and third from left) took the brunt of the ice water at Osoyoos Golf Club last week. They took the challenge in honour of their son Blair who died of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in August 2012. Safely on the ends are former Osoyoos Coyotes hockey captain Garrett Kucher (left), now a summer student in the pro shop, and head professional Drew Bolokoski (right). (Richard McGuire photo)
Arnie and Anne Polischuk are convinced their son Blair is looking down from heaven and beaming a big smile over the mind-boggling success of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that has swept across North America over the past three months.
Meanwhile, the top official with the ALS Society of B.C. is convinced the tens of millions of dollars in donations since June is going to lead to a major medical breakthrough and hopefully a treatment for the fatal degenerative brain disease.
Blair Polischuk, an acclaimed artist and musician, died in August 2012 only two years after being diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
His parents are overwhelmed at the fact tens of thousands of people across North America have supported the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and, as of late last week, helped raise almost $100 million for research in less than three months.
“Blair would have been all over this like a dirty shirt,” said his proud father, who joined his wife Friday afternoon at the Osoyoos Golf Club to join in the fun and had a huge bucket of ice water poured over their heads. “He liked to have a good time and would have loved to have been part of something like this.
“We have no doubt he is looking down and wishing he could have been part of this phenomenon.”
Wendy Toyer, the executive director of B.C.’s ALS Society, said the overwhelming popularity of this social media phenomenon has done more to raise awareness and funding for ALS research than hundreds of regional fundraising campaigns across North America combined.
“It’s simply overwhelming the way this thing has taken off,” she said. “It certainly wasn’t anything we had foreseen, but as soon as several major celebrities got involved and started doing the challenge, it just took off like wildfire.
“At last count, they were closing in on $100 million in North America, including between $10 and $15 million in Canada and those are simply incredible numbers that are really hard to fathom.”
For the past two years at the annual B.C. Professional Golfers Association (PGA) ALS Golfathon fundraiser at the Osoyoos Golf Club, the Polischuk’s have donated copies of a wonderful print completed by their son to everyone who donates at least $25 to the ALS Society.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has raised more money in three months than traditional fundraising initiatives for ALS research have in several years, which is astounding, said Arnie.
“It really is hard to believe how this thing has taken off, but the bottom line is it was long overdue,” he said. “This is a disease that still so few people know about and that’s very sad because it’s fatal.
“Hopefully all of this money will go to the right people and they will be able to find a cure or treatment.”
After participating in the challenge on Friday, Arnie nominated Mayor Stu Wells and members of council to participate and donate to the cause, while Anne nominated the entire member of the Osoyoos Dragonboat team.
Osoyoos Golf Club head professional Drew Bolokoski and pro shop employee and former Osoyoos Coyotes’ captain Garrett Kucher also took part and challenge the pro shop staff at Fairview Mountain Golf Club in Oliver to take up the challenge.
For the few who may not know, the challenge involves people getting doused with a bucket of ice water on video and posting that video to social media, then nominating others to do the same, all in an effort to raise money and awareness about ALS.
People can either accept the challenge or make a donation to the ALS charity of choice, or do both.
Peter Frates, a former standout Boston-area baseball star, and his family, is credited with making the Ice Bucket Challenge go viral on Facebook and Twitter. Frates, 29, was diagnosed with ALS in 2012 and has worked tirelessly since to spread awareness about ALS.
Toyer said she sent a personal e-mail to Frates last week to inquire “exactly how he wanted the money raised to be spent … and our association is determined to use the money donated to the ALS Society of B.C. exactly as he requested.”
Some of the celebrities who got involved early in the challenge include Oprah Winfrey, Eddie Vedder, Justin Timberlake, Randy Carlyle, Sidney Crosby and several members of the Vancouver Canucks.
Toyer said her office has been flooded with e-mails from ALS sufferers and their family members thanking the public for their amazing and generous support.
“I’ve received so many heartfelt e-mails from people living with ALS and they just can’t believe what is happening,” she said. “We’ve received more exposure about ALS and raised more money in three months than we could raise in several years.
“I really do believe that all of this money is going to result in researchers finding a permanent treatment. We’ve been on the verge of something big for some time now, but this extra money could put us over the top.”
The ALS Society of B.C.’s annual operating budget was around $2 million per year for several years, but a strategic plan two years ago aimed to raise an additional $2 million, which was achieved last year in large part due to the success of the ALS Golfathon event across the province, said Toyer.
The money raised by the ice bucket challenge must be directed towards research and finding a cure or treatment, she said.
Other degenerative neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s share many of the same symptoms as ALS sufferers and many leading researchers believe discovering the root cause of one could lead to treatment for all three, said Toyer.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge shows no signs of slowing down in popularity and Toyer is hopeful many more millions will be raised for research in the coming months.
‘I’ve personally met over 1,000 ALS sufferers and I remain convinced it’s the cruelest of all diseases,” she said. “I do believe what has happened these past three months is a gift from God and the time and place has come to find a treatment for this horrible disease.
“It’s my job and the job of our society to ensure all of this money being raised goes to where it should go and it will hopefully lead to a treatment or cure in a very short period of time.”
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
After enduring the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge once with staff from the Osoyoos Golf Club pro shop, Arnie and Anne Polischuk did it again on their own. They lost their son Blair to the dreaded disease two years ago. The challenge has raised nearly $100 million for ALS research. (Richard McGuire photo)
