Music fest to raise money for ALS clinic

(Featured photo is of Easily Amused)

A night of music will raise money to help people with the neurodegenerative disease ALS.

 Slated for April 22, Flex Fest: Rock Out for ALS! brings together the bands Easily Amused, the Mason Jars and the Ethan Stallings Group at Second City Distillery and is a new fundraiser for the Augusta University ALS Clinic.

“We’ve done walks, but the last few times, we’ve had a lower turnout,” said Corey Andrews, Senior Research Assistant with the Medical College of Georgia’s Department of Neurology.

That could be due to the pandemic, but also those who would benefit from the walk aren’t as likely to be able to participate in that type of event.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or sometimes known as Lou Gehrig’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. It ”eventually kills, the nerve cells and pathways in the brain and spinal cord. ALS inhibits all voluntary muscle action, leaving individuals paralyzed while mental faculties and senses remain unaffected,” according to the ALS Clinic website.

Andrews said the prognosis for those diagnosed with ALS isn’t good as there is no cure.

Patients die within two to five years, but if they are able to receive the myriad of services available at the clinic they may be able to extend their life by an extra year.

A year, said Andrews, can mean seeing someone walk across the stage for graduation, watch a loved one get married or be there for the birth of a child.

 The ALS Clinic is one of 34 certified by the ALS Association. It offers an array of services from diagnostics to treatment.

Patients are often seen by multiple therapists including speech, physical and occupational therapists to provide a better quality of life.

Some of the things patients need, however, aren’t covered by insurance, and that’s the reason for the fundraiser, he said.

Not only will there be live music, but there will be food and beverages. Fuse and Beefed Up food trucks will be on site.

The event will be from 5 to 11 p.m. Tickets are $15 each or $30 for VIP tickets, which includes two drinks tickets for those 21 and older.  For tickets, click here.