Copyright 2004 DR Partners d/b Las Vegas Review-Journal
Las Vegas Review-Journal (Nevada)
January 26, 2004 Monday FINAL EDITION
SECTION: E; Pg. 3E
LENGTH: 528 words
BYLINE: Monique Frigard
Jayne Furman has spent the past three years recovering from family tragedies. On Sept. 11, 2001, she lost her younger brother, Steven, in the World Trade Center attacks. Three months later, she lost her mother to lung cancer. But Furman has turned her personal tragedy into inspiration.
Furman, 46, received the first Black Felt Megaphone Award from the Nevada chapter of the ALS Association last fall. She had no idea she was up for an honor, she was taking pictures at the event for the association when she realized they were giving an award to her.
'They started talking about 9-11. ... I was not really paying attention,' Furman recalled. 'I turned to my friend, and I thought, 'I'm here on my own (photographic) story.' '
The award actually was designed for Furman, but will continue as an annual tradition. The Black Felt Megaphone Award is given to a person who has actively tried to get the word out about amyotrophiclateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
Furman has worn many hats when it comes to the ALS Association. She volunteers her time as the unofficial photographer at charitable events. In October 2002, she ran the Chicago Marathon, raising $5,000 for the charity. She has been on the board of directors and spends hours organizing events and fund-raisers in the name of ALS. She also has helped plan and participate in the annual Walk to D'Feet ALS.
Furman, a Nevada resident for three years, began volunteering with the association after establishing a friendship with her neighbor, Connie Bobo. Bobo lost her husband to ALS in 1993, and created the Nevada chapter of the ALS Association in 1998 because there were no resources of information or support available locally when her husband was ill.
'I saw how hard she worked, going to work every weekend,' Furman said of her neighbor. 'I thought she could probably use my help. She said I didn't have to help, but I said I wanted to.'
ALS is a fatal neuromuscular disease, causing progressive muscle weakness and eventually paralysis. Symptoms may include muscle stiffness, twitching, shaking, weakness and muscle shrinking.
Statistically, ALS is a devastating disease with 50 percent of people afflicted with it surviving the first 18 months, according to the ALS Association fact sheet.
The cause of ALS is unknown and there is no cure. Ten percent of cases are hereditary, and are called familial ALS. The other 90 percent have no hereditary link, and are called sporadic ALS. ALS does not affect the senses or the mind, and bowel and bladder control as well as sexual function remain intact, according to the ALS Association fact sheet.
Both women stressed the importance of getting the word out about the disease and the need to find a cure.
'One ordinary person can make a difference,' Bobo said. 'You don't have to be a celebrity ... or wealthy, you can just be a regular person (who wants to help.)'