MS Corporate Achievers Fundraising for a Cure

Like many whose lives have been affected by MS, Bill and Jeanne Churchill are doing everything they can to keep their life simple and moving forward. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease affecting more than 400,000 people in the United States. The disease targets the brain and central nervous system creating a wide range of debilitating symptoms both physical and mental. These symptoms range from muscle spasms and weakness to loss of vision or hearing and depression. In many cases these symptoms are severe and have given MS a reputation as a truly life-altering disease.

The National MS Society has been the front line in the fight against MS since 1946, working relentlessly to raise the money needed to find a cure and support the MS community. One of the fundraisers that the MS Society uses to raise money is the MS Corporate Achievers Campaign. MS Corporate Achievers is a campaign that allows local business professionals to partner with the MS Society. This is the campaign's seventh year in Cape Girardeau and fifteenth year for the chapter. Collectively, the campaign has raised over $3 million and has had more than 900 honorees and alumni participate. This year's goal is to raise $275,000 and to have 57 honorees and 20 alumni participate. This includes 10 honorees and 3 alumni from Cape.

Bill Churchill, a man living with MS in the Cape Girardeau area, a Corporate Achievers alumnus this year, raised close to $2,000 with two fundraisers that he hosted at The Library Downtown and The Venue. "I got involved (as an MS fundraiser) through my wife. I've always done the MS walk and raised money on a smaller level but my wife introduced me to raising money in a bigger way. I'd done Corporate Achievers in the past as an honoree, but this was the first year that I've done a fundraiser." Mr. Churchill said. "It was a bigger success than I could have ever hoped for."

Bill's wife, Jeanne Churchill, is not only the chairperson for the MS Corporate Achievers program, but she is also an alumnus, sponsoring a fundraiser in June. "My wife has done a lot of events in the past that I've helped with but this was the first year that I ran some too so there is a little bit of friendly competition between the two of us to see who can raise the most money. It's been fun." Jeanne's event, the 3rd Annual Mouse Races for MS, will take place at the VFW, 1049 N. Kingshighway on June 25th at 6:30 pm. Jeanne is co-hosting the event with another Corporate Achievers alumnus, Sandy Hoffman who has MS. Last year Sandy was the top fundraiser and raised over $5,000.

Living with MS can be a trying task. "I'm not the same person I used to be." Mr. Churchill said. "I'm not as active as I used to be. I worked until August, but now I have a stay-at-home lifestyle. I get up in the mornings with my wife and then lounge around. All the little things are big accomplishments now, shaving, showering, and brushing my teeth. Whenever I do those things I'll always text my wife because it's a big deal now."

"My MS started with Trigeminal Neuralgia and left leg weakness. Then I got blurry vision for about 6 months. It was 3 years before I was diagnosed with MS. The symptoms had gone away and I had almost put them out of mind, but then they came back. I've always seen myself as an educator of MS. I used to work for a hospital and none of the nurses knew what MS was so I think I know a lot more about MS than most people do and I like to share my knowledge with people. My biggest advice is to not wait until the last minute. I always did my best work last minute, under pressure. But I'm not who I used to be so it's not always a good idea to wait until the last minute anymore."

If you would like to participate in, or nominate someone to be an MS Corporate Achievers Honoree or you would like ticket or sponsorship information regarding the Mouse Races for MS you may contact Sharon Hileman at the National MS Society's Gateway Area Chapter, 1217 N Kingshighway, Ste. 116, Cape Girardeau, MO 63701, 314-303-6793.