“It’s a good way for the boys to learn about how it feels to give back to the community,” Lihu‘e Baseball League (LBL) Mariners coach Larry Ramboyon said as he kept a close eye on his team of baseball players
“It’s a good way for the boys to learn about how it feels to give back to the community,” Lihu‘e Baseball League (LBL) Mariners coach Larry Ramboyon said as he kept a close eye on his team of baseball players who were already itching to start the Annual MS Walk, Saturday.
The Mariners were part of about 250 walkers who gathered at the Kukui Grove Shopping Center to take part in the annual fund-raising event that helps with research and programs for the Hawai‘i Multiple Sclerosis Society.
This was beyond the organizers expectations, and due to the numbers, registration took a little longer than expected, delaying the start of the walk for a few minutes.
Ramboyon and his staff of coaches including Layton Tani, Eddie Doi, and Dean Oshiro were also joined by a Cub Pack Mother and a pair of Cub Scouts from Pack 148 sponsored by the Lihu‘e Christian Church as the Pack Mother explained that normally the Cub Pack helps walk in the United Way Walkathon, but a lot of the Cubs were walking with the LBL baseball team so they came out to support.
Ramboyon said that the team had a bye on their schedule today, so it was a perfect opportunity for them to learn about community service and what it feels like to give back.
“Otherwise, they’d just be home sleeping, watching TV, or playing video games,” he said. “This way, they can learn something.”
In addition to the baseball team, the Interact Club was also well represented with about 30 walkers who were also helping distribute red National MS wristbands for a nominal donation.
Bev Brody of the Great Kaua‘i Weigh Out program that will end with a celebration next weekend at the convention hall, estimated that about 90 walkers from their program were also supporting the MS Walk, earning program premiums for their participation. The amount of Great Weigh Out participants kept Brody at a table tallying their participants instead of being out on the approximately three-mile course that wound its way up to the Chiefess Kamakahelei School and back to the shopping center.
A team from Wal-Mart, one of the MS Walk’s national sponsors, was also on hand to lend their support.
Diane Mikami of FM97 also had a team of walkers on hand for the Saturday event, noting that they believe in coming out to support events like this because it is part of the community, and it also provides a means for their newer employees to get a feel of the community they serve.
Jessie Sam Fong, whose family is well aware of what MS can do to an afflicted individual, noted that in addition to the awareness information, there were also representatives from several medication companies that distribute medication to help with the MS battle.
Mel Rapozo took off his councilman’s hat for the occasion as he joined Stan and Marie Yadao on the stage to keep the walkers in line for the start, Rapozo noting that because there was so much support, next year, they’ll add more registration lines to expedite the process.
Cynthia Edralin, who works at the Kaua‘i Police Department, had assembled a big group of supporters who were clearly visible because of their special teal colored tee-shirts.
Included in her group were her nephews who got up early to help support the walk before heading to Waimea where they were scheduled to play in a baseball game.
Lisa Barnett of the Hawai‘i MS Society announced that Kaua‘i had surpassed their goal of raising $12,000 due to the strong support shown for the MS Walk. Kaua‘i’s total came in at over $15,000 with monies still coming in as walkers turned their attention towards enjoying some of the post-walk refreshments provided by generous community donors.
Barnett was thrilled with the response to Saturday’s event, recollecting that when she started helping coordinate the walks locally several years ago, there were only about 25 people showing up.
Barnett explained that funds raised through the Walks, occurring at three sites in Hawai‘i, help provide service as well as helps with the research that will hopefully lead to a cure of the disease.
Multiple Sclerosis is thought to be an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system that consists of the brain, spinal cord, and the optic nerves.
Surrounding and protecting the nerve fibers of the central nervous system is a fatty tissue called myelin which helps the nerve fibers conduct electrical impulses.
In MS, myelin is lost in multiple areas, leaving scar tissue called sclerosis. The damaged areas are also known as plaques or lesions, and sometimes, the nerve fiber itself is damaged or broken.
Myelin also makes the nerve fibers do its job, and when myelin or the nerve fiber is destroyed or damaged, the ability of the nerves to conduct electrical impulses to and from the brain is disrupted which produces the various symptoms of MS.
These symptoms are unpredictable and vary from person to person and from time to time in the same person.
- For more information on MS, visit the National MS Society Web site at www.nationalmssociety.org.
- Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) and dfujimoto@pulitzer.net.
