On September 3^rd, Emmet and Patrick Davitt will set out on a journey and a mission. They will be Pedaling for a cure.

A letter from Emmet:

Our Journey will be to cycle the East Coast Greenway; a 3000 mile bike ride from Calais, Maine (on the Canadian border) to Key West Florida. We hope to complete our trip in 10 to 12 weeks. (We will be supported by my wife Julie who will meet up with us periodically to resupply us as well as put in some miles of her own). Our mission is to raise both money for and awareness of medical research to help find treatment for and finally a cure for ALS (commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s’ disease). Our journey will be an adventure; our mission will be deeply personal!

My cousins, the Kennedys, my mother’s identical twin’s family, has been ravaged by this horrible, hellish disease. My uncle, Chris Kennedy, died in his mid-sixties. My younger cousin, Jimmy Kennedy, newly married with a newborn son, was stricken at 29 and, after a valiant struggle, succumbed at 31. My Cousin Jake Kennedy, a father of 4, died a few years ago at 66. Another cousin, Richard (“Ratt”), has been courageously battling the disease for several years. Other family members, though not yet stricken, have learned that they carry the ALS gene. Their children, the next generation, need to make the painful decision whether to be tested genetically and decide whether or not to have children of their own.

Millions of families, like my cousins, have been painfully touched by this dreadful, always fatal, neurodegenerative disorder that results in the progressive loss of both upper and lower motor neurons that normally control voluntary muscle contraction.

In 1997, the year that my cousin Jimmy died, the Angel Fund was established by Ginny Delvecchio, herself an ALS patient. She died a year later. Ginny’s family, Ginny’s cousins; the Nigro family and the Kennedy family have continued the mission. My Cousin “Ratt” has been extremely active in the organization and serves as the President of the Angel Fund. The Angel Fund for ALS Research is an independent non-profit charity dedicated to supporting ALS research at UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester, MA., internationally recognized for its ground-breaking work in the fight against this devastating disease. The laboratory is under the direction of world renowned researcher Dr. Robert H. Brown, Jr.

Although Ratt worked tirelessly for many years representing the Angel Fund in honor of his late younger brother, he, as mentioned above, has been in the midst of his own fight over the last several years battling the ravages of ALS. He has been the recipient of remarkable care from Dr. Brown and the staff of UMass-Chan Medical Center. He credits this care for keeping him alive and optimistic. He lives his life with an incredibly inspiring attitude and endless gratitude. A cure isn’t yet here but there is light at the end of the tunnel!

Please support Patrick and I this Fall on our journey and our mission with your thoughts, prayers and, if possible, a per mile pledge. A penny a mile pledge, for instance, would amount to a $30.00 gift but, of course, any contribution is welcome and greatly appreciated. The Angel Fund prides itself on having minimal overhead costs (e.g. – no board salaries) and we will cover all of our own traveling costs on this trip. Every dollar raised will go directly to support the promising research of Dr. Brown and his associates.

Please support Emmet and Patrick as they #Step Up to Cure ALS. Every donation helps us in the fight against ALS.

If you would like to support Emmet and Patrick’s ride, please click here.

If you would like to donate by mail, please send checks to: The Angel Fund for ALS Research, 649 Main Street, Wakefield, MA 01880