Every dollar donated will go to the ALS Therapy Development Institute, a biotech focused exclusively on ALS research. 

Larry, Colin, Laura, and Claire

ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that causes muscle weakness, difficulty swallowing and breathing, and eventual paralysis while leaving the senses and intellect intact. It is also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease and Motor Neuron Disease. Current scientific understanding cannot determine what causes the disease nor how to cure it. It strikes individuals randomly, with 90% of cases occurring in families with no history of the illness. Most people live two to five years after diagnosis. At any given time, there are approximately 30,000 Americans living with ALS. My friend Larry is one of them.

Sister Christine, Larry, Larry's parents Joe and Pat, brother Brian

Larry was born in Florida and moved around a lot when he was young, finally landing in Dearborn, Michigan when he was 12. 40 years later Larry still has friends that he first met back in Dearborn. Like any big brother, he grew up teasing his sister Christine and brother Brian when they were young. As a teenager he took to skateboarding and watching Monty Python with his friends. That irreverence and a healthy disrespect for authority are definitely part of Larry’s personality. Larry also loved science and music and pursued both of those passions in his college years, studying Engineering joining a New Wave band, Conditioned Response, with three friends. According to one band member, the band was “world famous in Dearborn!”.

Another passion he pursued was for Laura Bishop, the love of his life. Larry graduated with an electrical engineering degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, persuaded Laura to marry him, and move out to Silicon Valley with him when he graduated. He and Laura have two lovely children. Colin is pursuing a Ph.D. at Cornell and their daughter, Claire graduated from the University of Michigan in 2018 and is now living and working in Ann Arbor. Larry says that his kids are his proudest achievement. Larry was diagnosed with ALS the same month he turned 55, when Claire was finishing her junior year.

Skate punk Larry is the second guy from the left
Larry's band, Conditioned Response, circa 1983

Larry and Laura on their wedding day

Larry is a well-respected engineering manager with 22 patents in his name. Since Larry has always been on the cutting edge of technology and research, ALS Therapy Development Institute was a natural fit. ALS TDI is the world’s first and largest biotech focused exclusively on ALS research. The organization is led by people with ALS and drug development experts. ALS TDI spends 87 cents out of every donated dollar on research. And that research is expensive. It costs $1300 to sequence the gene of one individual; it costs $20,000 to enroll one person in ALS TDI’s Precision Medicine Program. With donor support, ALS TDI will continue its ground-breaking research, and in particular, will focus on helping to move  AT-1501 research closer to clinical trial. AT-1501 is the antibody discovered after the massive fundraising of the ice-bucket challenge.

Laura, Larry and the gang enjoying a night on the town
Larry and Laura in paradise

Today, Larry is a senior engineering manager at GM where he is leading a team of engineers developing next generation “Infotainment” systems (what car radios have evolved into). He knows the importance of research and his whole professional life has been about applying science to make lives better. Larry felt proud and happy to witness Claire’s graduation in May of 2018, and looks forward to attending Colin’s commencement ceremony when he completes his Ph.D. Larry and Laura have a lot of their love story left to live, and they know that ALS research at ALS TDI can help them do that.

Larry, Ollie, and Laura

ALS Sucks. Donate what you can now.