MS Walk brings awareness to Vance, Enid communities

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Amanda Mills
  • Public Affairs
Vance Air Force Base, Okla. --  Team Vance volunteers are always looking for ways to help the base and the people in the community.
Sometimes they get the chance to make an even greater impact, such as helping find a cure for multiple sclerosis.
Last year, Team Vance raised $38,000 for the National MS Society's annual MS Walk, which returns to Enid April 8.
Dr. Lynne Taylor, a business and industry services coordinator at Autry Technology Center whose late husband Tom had MS, is a point of contact between Vance and the Society. She asked the base to be involved with the walk again, according to Terri Presa, Vance volunteer coordinator.
"People can help by walking as individuals or by contacting their unit volunteer representatives to form a team," Ms. Presa said. "However, if you can't make the walk, you can purchase a shoe."
The paper sneakers symbolize the nation's walk towards achieving medical research into MS, Ms. Presa said. They cost $1 and are available at the family support center or from a unit volunteer representative. The money goes to the National MS Society.
Registration the day of the event takes place at 9 a.m. in Champlin Park, but people are encouraged to register online at nationalmssociety.org/oke. To join a Vance team or to purchase a sneaker, call Ms. Presa at 7120 or any unit volunteer representative.
Frank McIntyre, 71st Flying Training Wing Public Affairs Internal Information chief, is proud that members of Team Vance are participating in the Enid MS Walk.
"I would like to thank the Team Vance members who are taking the time to walk for a MS cure," said the Air Force award-winning photographer and journalist.
"I hope their efforts will contribute to a cure being found in my lifetime."
According to the National MS Society, MS is a chronic, unpredictable neurological disease that affects the central nervous system. Symptoms of MS are unpredictable and vary from person to person and from time to time in the same person. For example, one person may experience abnormal fatigue, while another might have severe vision problems. A person with MS could have loss of balance and muscle coordination making walking difficult; another person with MS could have slurred speech, tremors, stiffness, and bladder problems. While some symptoms will come and go over the course of the disease, others may be more lasting.
Most people with MS have a normal or near-normal life expectancy. There is no cure for MS yet, but drugs can help slow the course or symptoms in some patients.