©Journal Inquirer 2005
By Candace Taylor, Journal Inquirer July 01, 2005

SOUTH WINDSOR -- Maj. Michael Donnelly, a retired Air Force pilot who was stricken with Lou Gehrig's disease while serving in the Gulf War and became a crusader for veterans battling illnesses linked to military service, died Thursday, family members said today.
Through public campaigning and his 1998 memoir, "Falcon's Cry," Donnelly became a national figure whose work contributed to the federal government's 2001 decision to pay medical and disability benefits to hundreds of Gulf War veterans stricken with Lou Gehrig's disease.

A South Windsor native, Donnelly graduated from East Catholic High School in 1977 and Fairfield University in 1981.

He began a 15-year military career that included stints as an F-16 pilot and instructor. He received four Air Medals and other honors during his service.

Donnelly was an Air Force fighter pilot during the Persian Gulf War in 1991. In 1996, at age 36, he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS -- commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- while on active duty.

ALS is a progressive degenerative disease that attacks nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord, eventually causing the loss of all muscle function.

After his diagnosis, Donnelly became a champion for Persian Gulf War veterans battling ALS and other diseases that he believed to be war-related. In his 1998 memoir, "Falcon's Cry," he described tens of thousands of veterans suffering from illnesses related to the war and their struggle for recognition.

The government initially denied a link between Gulf War service and ALS. But Donnelly spent six years campaigning in Washington, D.C., at the Pentagon and the Department of Veteran Affairs. Finally, in 2001, Veterans' Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi acknowledged scientific data that showed Persian Gulf War veterans are more than twice as likely as other veterans to develop ALS.

Principi acknowledged Donnelly's efforts in the cause and announced that the Veterans Administration would grant full benefits to all Gulf War veterans with ALS.

In 2002, South Windsor honored Donnelly by naming a 116-acre land preserve after him. Mayor Edward F. Havens Sr. said today flags in town would be flown at half-mast on the day of Donnelly's funeral and wake.

Before his death, the disease had weakened Donnelly's muscle tone, forcing him to use a wheelchair and leaving him unable to speak.