Joshua Graham Takes and Issues the Ice Bucket ALS Challenge
You’ve probably seen videos of all kinds of people dumping entire buckets of ice water over their heads recently and wondered, wha…? I was curious enough to look into this when Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon.com took up the challenge and then issued it to his three favorite Star Trek actors–William Shatner, Patrick Steward, and George Takei.
Turns out, this is the Ice Bucket Challenge, which aims to help raise support for ALS research.
How it works: When someone issues you a challenge, within 24 hours you must either donate $100 or more to an ALS charity, or dump a bucket full of water and ice cubes over your head. You then go on to issue the same challenge to other people.
Well this caught my attention for a number of reasons, but the most significant of them is the fact that I lost my mother to ALS back in 2003, around the time I made my first professional sale to Pocket Books/Simon & Schuster. My mother was the kind of person who loved her children unconditionally, and beyond what we deserved. She also gave me a sense that nothing would ever be impossible, as long as I put my mind to it, and depended on God.
Well, she was right, and I have been blessed to have lived this out in my own life.
ALS is a neurodegenerative disease the completely paralyzes its victims over time. All of their voluntary muscle functions–including swallowing and breathing eventually stop, while the mind remains completely intact and aware. It’s a cruel disease with no known cure, but my mother fought it with courage, dignity, and faith.
So it’s in her honor that I take this challenge (I’m going to donate as well as dump the ice water on my head), then in the hopes of starting a trend within my field, issue the challenge to three of my fellow New York Times bestselling authors Douglas Preston, Vincent Zandri, and James Rollins.
Love you, Mom. This is for you!
Have you known anyone that suffered from ALS, or any other terminal illness that you’d like to honor and remember? Please share in the comments below.
Please join me in making a donation to the ALS association HERE. Your gift helps provide local services to people with ALS, global research to find a cure and advocacy efforts to raise awareness of this devastating disease. Thank you!
Joshua Graham is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, winner of the International Book Award and Forward National Literature Award. His thrillers include DARKROOM, LATENT IMAGE and BEYOND JUSTICE, and TERMINUS. Graham's works have been characterized as thought-provoking page-turners.
Legal Notice: All information on this website and blog are from Mr. Graham's personal experience and insight and should not be viewed in any way, directly or inferred, as qualified professional advice.
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