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Betsy's Fight to End FA
Fort Stockton residents have another opportunity to help fight Friedreich's Ataxia, the disease that has claimed the life of Betsy Neyland, and threatens the life of her sister, Emily. December 17 would have been Betsy's twenty-sixth birthday. Her friends and family have planned a fundraiser, "Betsy's Fight to End FA," to be held at the First United Methodist Church from six to nine Monday evening.
There will be a silent auction, bake sale, and a chili meal. One highlight of the evening is sure to be the "kiss the pig" contest. Contestants will be Mayor Ruben Falcon, Jim Horton, Russell Tippin, Kyle Card and Ray Griffin.
All proceeds will go to research into this deadly disease. Friedreich's ataxia is an inherited disease that causes progressive damage to the nervous system resulting in symptoms ranging from gait disturbance and speech problems to heart disease. It is named after the physician Nicholaus Friedreich, who first described the condition in the 1860s. "Ataxia," which refers to coordination problems such as clumsy or awkward movements and unsteadiness, occurs in many different diseases and conditions. The ataxia of Friedreich's ataxia results from the degeneration of nerve tissue in the spinal cord and of nerves that control muscle movement in the arms and legs. The spinal cord becomes thinner and nerve cells lose some of their myelin sheath, the insular covering on all nerve cells that helps conduct nerve impulses. Friedreich's ataxia, although rare, is the most prevalent inherited ataxia, affecting about 1 in every 50,000 people in the United States. Males and females are affected equally.
The funds raised Monday night will go to the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance, a national, public non-profit, tax exempt organization dedicated to research for treatment and a cure for this disease.
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