GEORGETOWN, ME – Earlier today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) accepted the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge to raise money and awareness to find a cure for ALS. Senator King was challenged by John Gregoire of Windham, who is in the later stages of ALS; Sarah Caldwell of Falmouth, a Prudential Spirit of Community Service Award winner who lost her father to ALS last year; Susan Young, Editorial Page Editor at the Bangor Daily News; Johann Sabbath, Chief Operating Officer at Tide Creative; and Karen Arel, President of the Ogunquit Chamber of Commerce, among many others.

“This is dedicated to my friend, Joe Mayo, who ALS took from us some years ago and my friend from high school football, Craig Munro, who is struggling with ALS right now,” Senator King said. “And the challenge is to three of my Senate freshman colleagues: Tim Kaine of Virginia, Jeff Flake of Arizona, and Ted Cruz of Texas!”

As of today, the ALS Association has received $15.6 million in donations compared to $1.8 million during the same time period last year (July 29^th to August 18^th), which have come from existing donors and 307,598 new donors to The Association.

ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Eventually, people with ALS lose the ability to initiate and control muscle movement, which often leads to total paralysis and death within two to five years of diagnosis. There is no cure and only one drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that modestly extends survival.

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