An important part of Ride for Life's mission is to help ALS patients and their familes who are facing the daily challenge of living with the disease.

Through your generous contributions, Ride for Life has established a patient services program to address some of these challenges.

Our first two programs, outlined below, have been very successful and we hope to not only increase their scope but to also add more innovative programs, in the future.

Care for Life provides ALS patients with free limited in-home respite care.

This program will greatly assist families by easing the strain, which many face when dealing with ALS because of the lack of respite care from their health insurance provider.

Care for Life provides grants of $1500 each to help familes pay for respite care provided by a local healthcare agency. Applications are accepted and a limited number of grants are awarded every three months.

Patients and caregivers who have received a Care for Life grant have told us how much it has meant to them. Some caregivers said the grant allowed them to hire a healthcare worker for several hours each week and this gave them the opportunity to run errands, visit friends, or even just relax for a while. One patient said he used his grant so a health care worker could give him a proper bath and a shave each week. How you use it is up to you.

Care for Life is not intended to supplement existing care but rather, to assist families without any help.

A licensed health care agency must provide the respite service and must bill Ride For Life, Inc., directly. They must also furnish us with their tax identification number. Our liaison will assist with agency inquiries about the respite grant.

Katz Care: Plan for Life provides grants for free limited legal services for people living with ALS.

Plan for Life is designed to assist ALS patients who are facing critical legal issues, such as dealing with health care providers and insurers, applying for disability benefits, financial matters, or protecting an individual's most personal end of life decisions. Although serious and timely legal decisions must be made, not all patients with ALS can easily afford the cost of hiring an attorney. Therefore, it is our hope at Ride for Life, Inc., that these legal assistance grants will aid in easing one source of worry or tension for those living with ALS.

These grants of up to $750 each are awarded several times a year. The types of legal services Plan for Life envisions supporting include, but are not limited to, the following:

--Simple estate planning - to arrange your property so that you get the maximum benefit from any tax or estate law and also to carry out your wishes regarding how you want your property distributed

--Living wills - an instrument that communicates your decision about withholding life sustaining medical treatment

--Durable financial powers of attorney - an instrument that allows another person to manage your finances if you are unable to do so

--Health care powers of attorney or proxies - an instrument that allows another person to communicate or make decisions about your health care and medical treatment in the event you are unable to do so

--Medicaid/Medicare compliance - to assist you in obtaining your benefits under these programs

--Disability contests - to assist you in obtaining Social Security Disability benefits or other disability benefits

Watch this website for the next opportunity to apply for a Care for Life or Plan for Life grant.

You will have 4 opportunities a year to apply for a grant with a new application period starting every 3 months: March, June, September, December, and grants will be issued the month following (April, July, October, January).

The success of these patient services programs is due to your continued support of Ride for Life. Thank you.