SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The ALS Network announces its annual Champions for Cures and Care on Friday, January 17, 2025, at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. This elegant evening will bring together the ALS community to honor the individuals and organizations making a significant effort to advance the ALS Network's mission related to care, research, and advocacy.
The ALS community can look forward to a festive evening featuring cocktails and wine tasting, a silent and live auction, a three-course dinner, special guest appearances, and live entertainment. The highlight of the evening will be the presentation of ALS Network's highest honors, The Essey Awards.
The Essey Spotlight Award will be presented to Grammy Award winner Kitt Wakeley and David Das, along with Jonathan Estabrooks, Patrick Conlon, Sydney Anderson and Christina Giacona, producers of Aaron Lazar's Impossible Dream album, a 2025 Grammy Award-nominated collection of music performed by Broadway royalty. Proceeds from the album have benefitted the ALS Network.
This year, the prestigious Essey Commitment to Care Award will be presented to Patricia (Patty) Schimbor, Esq. and Susan (Sue) Morris for their outstanding contributions to the ALS community. Patty has dedicated over a decade as a volunteer leader for the organization in honor and memory of both her husband, Marc, and her law partner, Jim Barber. She is credited with guiding the ALS Network through the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic while expanding care programs to meet community needs.
Sue has served in myriad key volunteer leadership roles for the organization, in memory of her husband Dr. Mark Morris. She has focused on the importance of advancing organizational mission priorities, with a special emphasis on care – for people living with ALS, and their caregivers. She and her family have established the Morris Family Caregiver Initiative, administered via the ALS Network.
The live auction will be hosted by TV personality, Franco Finn. Finn is best known as the host of "Warriors Hype Man" for the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena, where he performs live in front of over 20,000 fans each night. Guests will enjoy live music by Carlos Calvo and friends. Calvo, a classically trained musician and often referred to as Hollywood's "Guitar Teacher to the Stars," combines Alternative Folk/Pop with virtuoso guitar playing.
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a fatal, neurodegenerative illness that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. The average life expectancy of a person with ALS is two to five years from diagnosis. As the disease progresses, people with ALS lose the ability to walk, move, speak, swallow and, eventually, to breathe– all while the mind and senses continue to function. Veterans are at twice the risk as those who have not served in the military. Currently, there is no known cause or cure for ALS.