Bike MS is on a mission to stop MS in its tracks – Kansas City Pitch

Cyclists participating in Bike MS 2019 ride. // Photo by Kent Ruby Photography

The woman with progressive multiple sclerosis who struggles to button her shirt in the morning, yet is determined to stand up and dance at her granddaughters wedding. The new mother recovering from a relapse and unable to walk, wondering what her babys future holds. The father struggling to say his childs name. The painter feeling their grip loosen. The avid cyclist feeling her balance go.

MS can be harsh. Unfair. Overwhelming. An unpredictable disease of the central nervous system that can affect everything the body does, always taking away, never giving back, and always threatening to take again. MS remains a fact of life for nearly one million people, but the breakthroughs are just beyond their grasp.

What began with one womans vision and commitment is today a 50-state network leading a global charge to create a world free of MS. MS was neglected and poorly understood when Sylvia Lawry started the Society in 1946. But together, as a movement, the MS Society has reshaped life with MS. They have paved the way for all of the nearly 20 treatment options available today, none of which existed just 30 years ago. They have brought the world together to set standards for diagnosing MS quickly and accurately, and to crystallize the distinction between relapsing-remitting and progressive MS. The MS Society has funded over 1,000 early-career researchers who have since been behind nearly every breakthrough and treatment. They continue to ensure that the voices of those with MS are always heardin courtrooms and boardrooms where they fight for access and affordability, in media where they tell their stories, and in the halls of power where they make their needs known.

Mari Lynn (left) and David Poskin (right) at Bike MS Ride 2019. // Photo by John Ellert Photography

With the cancellation of hundreds of fundraising events nationwide, the National MS Society stands to lose one-third of its annual revenue, thats more than $60 million in vital funding for research, services, and advocacy. All the National MS Societys events have moved virtual, including their well-known Bike MS event. Bike MS: Kansas City typically has around 1,300 cyclists ride together from Olathe, KS to Lawrence, KS to raise awareness and funds to end MS. This year, the event has been transitioned to Bike MS: Inside Out which pulls together 55 other Bike MS rides across the country to virtually ride inside your home, ride your own route outside as far as you want, or just to ride around the block. There is no fundraising minimum or fee to sign up. To take part of Bike MS: Inside Out visit nationalmssociety.org/bike-ms-2020 and prepare to ride on September 26th.

Another way to support National MS Society is by purchasing a bike themed shirt through Charlie Hustle. Charlie Hustle has partnered up with the National MS Society to create unique Communi-TEE. A portion of the proceeds from each shirt will benefit the MS Society in its mission to stop MS in its tracks, restore what has been lost, and end MS forever. The campaign will go through September 26. You can purchase a shirt or two online at charliehustle.com or at their store on the Plaza.

If one persons passion and perseverance can launch a movement thats led to more breakthroughs than the world has seen for any other neurological disease, imagine what the MS movement can achieve today and how much of a difference your support can make. We can be the generation that ends the disease and changes life for millions of people affected by MS today.

A build-your-own-adventure Bike MS experience

September 26, 10 a.m.

nationalmssociety.org

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Bike MS is on a mission to stop MS in its tracks - Kansas City Pitch