ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a devastating illness that affects muscle movement. It causes increased muscle weakness, paralysis and eventually, death.
There is no cure.
A St. Petersburg woman knows firsthand how devastating this disease can be for the patient and the family because her brother died of it. She is now hoping to help other families touched by ALS.
"There's my youngest brother Johnny, the gift to the world, myself and my two older brothers," Deb Fabricatore said.
There's a reason Fabricatore refers to her younger brother as a gift. He was five years younger, but their birthdays were just weeks apart.
"I'll never forget my father driving up with the big blue car and my mother bringing this cardboard bassinet with a pink and blue stripe on it, and I thought for sure he was my birthday present," Fabricatore said.
Fabricatore and her brother, John, were always close. So when he was diagnosed with ALS at just 50 years old, it was a shock.
"They sit down and they hear the words, 'you're being diagnosed with one of the worst diseases known to mankind, go home and get your affairs in order,'" Fabricatore said.
John died 3 years later. That's when Deb started working with an organization called Hark-ALS.
"Hark-ALS provides resources and support for families who have someone diagnosed with ALS for anything that's not covered by insurance," Fabricatore said.
Fabricatore moved to St. Pete a few years ago and when she decided to hold a fundraiser here, she was thrilled with all the support.
"It's a big city, but it's really a small community and that's one of the things that I really love. It really is different to have this much support for ALS," Fabricatore said.
Helping others is now a gift she can give back to her late brother.
"I very much feel that his voice isn't silenced because he was such a giving man and I think this is a way for his legacy to continue to give," Fabricatore said.
The inaugural fundraising event for Hark-ALS is this Sunday afternoon at The James Museum in St. Petersburg. 10 Tampa Bay weekend morning anchor Jenny Dean will be there to emcee the event.