18-01-2016
The ALS League turned 20 years old in 2015 which did not go unnoticed. Thanks to the donations, the ALS League brings 2015 to an end with € 1.198.000 in the research fund A Cure for ALS. The league organized 2 international projects, launched 23 lobbying actions, performed 1.064 patient interventions and was supported by 75 external events. 2016 starts with hope.
2015 started out strongly for the ALS League: after the hype of the Ice Bucket Challenge, that was restarted in August with the league’s ambassadors, a € 1 million grant from the Flemish government was allocated to the international research Project MinE, supported by president emeritus of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy. Thanks to a revenue of € 100.366 at the gala evening, the ALS League was able to complete the financial aspect of the project. The gala evening took place on June 20th, the day before the International ALS Day, on which the campaign Connection Lost was launched. A gripping call from ALS patients, followed by the online campaign Eye Click Donation, which won the bronze Lion in Cannes among others. In august, the league concluded a partnership with the transport company H.Essers and sent 14 highly sophisticated wheelchairs, free of charge, to the ALS/MND Association of Taiwan.
The ALS League launched a new corporate identity and logo in September and firmly positioned itself as a national, bilingual organization. This prompted a name change as well: ALS Liga België – Ligue SLA Belgique. The league thus stresses that it represents all the Belgian ALS patients. Finally, the ALS League is proud to present its newly launched ALS TV and ALS SHOP that saw the light in December 2015.
The research fund A Cure for ALS was modified last year: donators can now choose which research project they want their donation allocated to. The league will continue to raise funds in 2016. To this means, text donations have been launched at the end of the year and will be used in all the media campaigns. The campaign on the International ALS Day promises to shine a light on ALS. That is the main goal of next year: to position itself stronger and stronger in the Belgian charity spectrum by increasing brand awareness and signing on to partnerships that lead to productive collaborations.
ALS or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a deadly nerve muscle disease in which the motor neurons die. The muscles do not get any signals anymore, causing them to paralyze little by little, until the patient can no longer move, talk, swallow and eat. The emotional and intellectual capacities remain intact. On average, patients die 33 months after the diagnosis, without any hope of healing.
The ALS League Belgium, an unsubsidized non-profit organization, tries to make their last years as agreeable as possible by offering them and their families psychosocial and administrative support, lending out communication and mobility aids free of charge, advocating for their rights with the government, stimulating and financing scientific research through the fund A Cure for ALS and offering tailor-made care through the fund MaMuze.
Heather De Cleer, Marketing, Communication & Event Officer: persdienst@als.be
For more information: Evy Reviers, CEO, +32 (0) 495 44 67 82