Late yesterday, state of Tennessee lawmakers approved $1 million for the LiveLikeLou Foundation and our work to establish a new, dedicated ALS research center at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). This investment from the state, along with $2.4 million already committed to this project, will help lead to discovery of treatments and cures for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and related fatal neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and dementia. 

We are so thankful to our local community of advocates and national group of supporters and friends for helping us get to this historic milestone for LiveLikeLou and the ALS community in and around Tennessee. 

VUMC Chair of Neurology Dane Chetkovich, MD, PhD, said, “We believe the efforts underway in Middle Tennessee by the LiveLikeLou Foundation will be consequential in the urgent search for a cure for ALS, a most cruel disease.” 

“Our family is encouraged by the national momentum for ALS research right now,” said Evan Campa, a Nashville mother of two and ALS advocate who was diagnosed with the disease in 2018. “The 2021 Act for ALS federal legislation places a new priority on funding for breakthrough ALS science. We hope this new research center at VUMC will be in a position to put those funds to work,” she added.

The Tennessee Legislature’s decision to vote for ALS research funding demonstrates the strength of this state and the power of Tennessee communities coming together to bring hope and solutions to this increasingly prevalent disease. 

Although this an exciting development, we remain focused on achieving our fundraising goal of $3.5 million, with a vision of $5 million to fully fund the LiveLikeLou Foundation ALS Research Center at VUMC. Thank you for joining us on this journey to leave ALS better than we found it!