Here’s an inside look at the incredible work of the Live Like Lou Foundation over the past quarter. Enjoy updates from our volunteers and researchers, and check out how our donors help us leave ALS better than we found it in honor of our namesake and baseball Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig and the more than 30,000 people living with Lou Gehrig’s disease across North America.
We are honored to announce the recipients of the Live Like Lou Foundation’s 2023 Postdoctoral Fellowship awards. Alexander Cammack, PhD, from University College London, and Yifu Han, PhD, from the University of Southern California were selected to receive $75,000 per year in direct funding for up to two years to pursue a novel, independent, and promising ALS investigation. This Live Like Lou research grant aims to support scientists in the early stages of postdoctoral training at an R1-level institutional research laboratory.
Both recipients’ research focuses on a gene mutation called C9orf72, which is the most common genetic mutation identified in individuals with ALS and is reported to be present in 40 to 50 percent of patients with familial (hereditary) ALS and five to ten percent of patients with sporadic ALS. Read more about these promising researchers and their Live Like Lou-funded projects.
“I might’ve been given a bad break, but I’ve got an awful lot to live for…” Lou Gehrig delivered this inspirational speech on July 4, 1939, just days after his diagnosis with ALS. While that was 84 years ago this month, we have yet to discover meaningful treatments for ALS or a cure. And this is why our work with Live Like Lou is meaningful and so important. Through our investments in emerging ALS research, support of ALS families, and work to generate awareness for Lou Gehrig’s disease, we are inspired by his bravery, humility, courage, and a deep sense of gratitude in the face of what had to be profound sorrow for all that he lost and all he was about to face. He is why and how we live like Lou.
There are a number of incredible organizations in the ALS community, and we are honored to highlight our work with the Team Hilliard Foundation. Just a few months before his anticipated retirement and dream of perfecting his golf game, Jim Hilliard was diagnosed with ALS. His ALS fight lasted nearly four years, and he passed away in September 2021. As a family who knows firsthand how devastating it is to live with ALS, they launched the Team Hilliard Foundation to support ALS organizations devoted to supporting research, treatments, and families affected by Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Learn more about Team Hilliard’s support of Live Like Lou by matching one of our scholarships and funding home improvement grants for ALS families in Georgia!
With more than $122,000 raised for the Live Like Lou Foundation to date, Laurie and John Roselle—and their exceptional community of friends, family, and fans—have established an endowment with the Live Like Lou Foundation to fund undergraduate neurodegenerative disease research at the University of Notre Dame.
The first Live Like Lou research grant was made in May to Notre Dame student Khang Chau, a junior studying biological sciences with plans to pursue a MD/PhD after graduation. Khang is studying in the lab of Cody Smith, whose lab is gaining insights into how diseases manifest themselves in the clinic with important implications to many neurodegenerative diseases. The Roselles and Live Like Lou are planning the second annual All in for Laurie Trivia Night on Friday, November 10, in Carmel, Indiana, to raise continued funds for ALS research. Learn more about sponsoring or attending this event!
Cullen Cochlan, a Phi Delta Theta member from the University of Pittsburgh, had the opportunity to throw out the first pitch at PNC Park during the Pirates’ Lou Gehrig Day celebrations on June 2. Cullen raised $11,361.50 through the Iron Phi program this year and was joined on the field by his father, Steve Cochlan, who is living with ALS. Steve is also a Phi Delt (he attended Bowling Green State University) and has turned his ALS diagnosis into an opportunity to support others through the ALS Family of Faith. Thank you, Cullen and Steve, for leaving ALS better than you found it!
Want to win some Live Like Lou swag (who doesn’t?!)? Hop on social media, share one thing you love about Live Like Lou, and tag us! Share your post by Monday, August 7, and you will be entered to win! We are so grateful to have your help in spreading the word about Live Like Lou among your network. Here are just a few examples of posts already entered to win (pictured above):
As we wrap up this quarter’s In the Dugout, we reflect on an incredible few months of progress, activity, and devotion for Live Like Lou. Here are just a few of the many additional highlights of what we’ve been up to:
We'll be back in touch in a few months with even more good news. Thank you for being interested in the Live Like Lou Foundation and our work to leave ALS better than we found it.
