Saturday, Sept. 26 at 10 a.m.—RUTLAND— On Saturday, Sept. 26, Cast Off 8’s Square Dance Club will walk in support of the Northern New England Chapter of “Walk to Defeat ALS.”
Cast Off 8’s Square Dance Club is typically registering new dancers for their club square dance program in September, in which square dancers meet for 25-30 sessions to learn a series of “calls,” and graduate to become “mainstream” square dancers.
But this year is different due to Covid-19. Club president Steve Hazelton remarked, “We can’t dance, but we can walk!” At that point the club committed to participating in the ALS event to continue to “move together as a team toward a goal,” just as dancers do in square dancing!
Every 90 minutes a person in this country is diagnosed with ALS and every 90 minutes another person will lose the battle against this disease. ALS occurs throughout the world with no racial, ethnic, or socioeconomic boundaries. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive, fatal neuromuscular disease that slowly robs the body of its ability to walk, speak, swallow and breathe. The life expectancy of a person with ALS averages two to five years from the time of diagnosis. ALS can strike anyone.
Presently there is no known cause of the disease, yet it still costs loved ones an average of $250,000 a year to provide the care people living with ALS and their families need.
Cast Off 8’s members will walk on Sept. 26 at 10 a.m. to raise awareness and funds for this important effort. Members will either walk on their own in their neighborhood, or join together (while social distancing) to walk.
The Cast Off 8’s are a square dance club that started in 1978 and has 55 active members.
