By now your Facebook wall has been taken over with videos of friends accepting the Ice Bucket Challenge. But don’t roll your eyes at the challenge, because guess what? The #IceBucketChallenge is working. In fact, it’s working to the tune of $13.3 million for the national ALS Association since the challenge took off in late July.
Here’s what else you need to know about the #IceBucketChallenge:
- This genius, marketing ploy is being credited to 29-year-old Pete Frates, who is diagnosed with ALS. Frates’ situation is rare as ALS rarely strikes with those that young. Frates learned about the challenge from friend Pat Quinn, a New Yorker also diagnosed with ALS, and saw potential in the fundraiser and trend. Frates can no longer speak and uses a feeding tube. Frates is also married with a baby on the way. How the story goes: Frates was a former Boston College baseball captain and challenged many of the local athletes to the #icebucket. Through news media and social media, the challenge kept reaching more and more people.
- What is ALS? The acronym sounds for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or also known as Lou Gehrig disease. ALS attacks the nerve cells that control voluntary muscle movement. A person’s mental capability remains intact. A person with ALS usually has 2 to 5 years to live.
- Awareness is great, but it’s also about finding a cure. Since July 29 of this year ALS has raised $13.3 million. Last year during the same time period, ALS raised only $1.7 million.
- Everyone has been challenged. From the entire Kennedy clan (who accepted the challenge) to President Obama (who donated funds) and Bill Gates (who went above and beyond with his contraption). So go ahead and join the fun. Be part of the ALS movement.
- How does it work? Fill a bucket with ice and water and dump it on yourself. Then nominate friends and family to do the same to raise ALS awareness. They either accept or donate $100 to ALS.
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