Dear Open Water Swimmers and Friends:
I am writing to you today to once again ask for your help and assistance!
Four years ago, my brother Kevin was diagnosed with ALS, which is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Prior to his diagnosis, my brother was very active and was always swimming, biking, and running! However, after battling the disease for 18 months, Kevin lost his battle with ALS on January 5, 2021.
During the short time that Kevin suffered from ALS, he fought a courageous battle against the disease, but lost his ability to speak, swallow, eat, walk, use his arms and legs, and was fed through a feeding tube. During the time that he suffered from ALS, Kevin participated in the Bike Ride to Defeat ALS in Napa, California which is not far from his home in Menlo Park, a suburb of San Francisco. He was able to participate in the ride and was still able to ride and his fundraising bike team raised over $500,000 to fund research to find a cure for ALS.
In order to play a small role in support of our brother’s battle with ALS, myself and my three siblings (John, Carol Ann & Kate) have created our own challenge which we have named Swim to Defeat ALS and the #GiveEmHeller Swim Team! We are trying to get all of our friends and family members to join us to raise awareness about ALS by participating in our 2023 Quassapaug Sailing Center Open Water Swim Festival on September 2, 2023. We are asking everyone to swim in support of our fight to find a cure for this horrible disease.
In addition, I invite everyone to consider a donation of any amount to our efforts to raise money to support the battle against ALS when you sign up for this year’s QSC Open Water Swim Festival. Please remember, no amount is too little and each and every donation to defeat ALS is greatly appreciated. However, I also wanted to advise everyone that raising awareness about the disease is just as good as making a donation. Simply by reading this message you are helping us raise awareness about this horrible disease!
Please feel free to share this correspondence with anyone you know who might be interested in joining our #GiveEmHeller Swim Team and help us to Swim to Defeat ALS! Swimcerely, Dave Heller
