People Who Made a Difference

[Janice]

Can you name someone, who through tragedy or adversity in their lives or others, have championed a cause and brought about public awareness?

John Walsh, host of America's Most Wanted, is a perfect example. After his son Adam was murdered over 20 years ago, he turned his grief into a mission to bring criminals to justice.

Victoria Principle has been a spokesperson for the Arthritis Foundation for many years. Both her parents are afflicted with the disease.

Locally, Ted Williams, Red Sox legend, campaigned tirelessly for The Jimmy Fund, a children's cancer foundation.

[Penny Lane]

Shelley Fabares brought Alzheimer's to the forefront after experiencing it with her mother. I personally have lost 1 close friend and a relative to this terrible disease. Hopefully more research will be done to cure this. Especially since Ronald Reagan's death from it.

[Janice]

Before her death, Princess Diana was very involved with ridding countries of dangerous land mines.

Paul McCartney and his wife Heather have taken on the same cause.

Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) was formed in 1980 when Candy Lightner's daughter Cari was killed by a drunk driver. Her outrage sparked her activism which created MADD. Today, it is the largest crime victims' assistance organization in the world with more than 3 million members and supporters.

[AKA]

Michael J. Fox has done wonderful things with his time for people with Parkinson's Disease.

Michael was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 1991, but didn't go public with it until 1998.

http://www.michaeljfox.org

Montel Williams is doing similar things for people with Multiple Sclerosis.

Montel was diagnosed with MS in 1999.

http://www.montelms.org

[Hollow]

We've got to work for a better future, we've got to join hands for tomorrow
Take the first step and you will see the future begins with you and me
We can start to make a difference if we want it for our children
Recycle that can and plant that tree, 'cause the future begins with you and me

We've got to work for a better future, we've got to join hands for tomorrow
Take the first step and you will see the future-

Dude, wait hold on. Wait a second. This is gay. This is really gay. Yeah, this is even gayer than all the men getting in a big pile and having sex with each other. Okay, sorry, my bad, everyone back in the pile. Back in the pile everyone! We're going back to the pile. Jump in! Come on, everybody! Never mind, we're going back to the pile! Took ur jurb!

[PZelda]

Ryan White worked hard to raise awareness for AIDS after he was first diagnosed w/ AIDS in December of 1984. He was VERY active (and extremely famous for it too) in the awareness for AIDS up until he passed away on April 8, 1990.

I've read his biography a TON of times, and I ALWAYS cry every time I read it. What a brave guy. He was only my age - 18 - when he finally passed away. He'd just became a teen when he was diagnosed w/ AIDS in 1984.

I strongly suggest you guys read his biography.

[Janice]

Originally posted by Miss Vicki
Ryan White worked hard to raise awareness for AIDS after he was first diagnosed w/ AIDS in December of 1984. He was VERY active (and extremely famous for it too) in the awareness for AIDS up until he passed away on April 8, 1990.

Ryan's story was very tragic. I remember Elton John befriended him.

Paul Michael Glaser of Starsky and Hutch lost a lot to AIDS.... both his wife and daughter died from the disease. His late wife Elizabeth did a lot for the cause.

From imdb:
Mini biography
Wife Elizabeth received HIV-tainted blood in a 1981 transfusion and unwittingly passed it on to their two children. Elizabeth became a fervent AIDS activist and spoke on AIDS at the 1992 Democratic convention. Daughter, Ariel, died at age 7 of AIDS in 1988. Son, Jake, is HIV-positive.

Wife Elizabeth was the founder of the Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

[Skywalker]

I think the saddest movie I've ever seen was the Ryan White Story.

[AKA]

I read Ryan White's autobiography when I was about thirteen. It moved me quite a bit. It was the first biography I was ever enthralled by.

What that boy went through was awful. He was very brave, though. He helped America realize that anyone could get AIDS.

In his book, Ryan writes about how he befriended people like Elton John (mentioned above) and John Mellencamp, who, like Ryan, was from Indiana. Ryan was a big John Mellencamp fan.

If I remember right, one day John bought Ryan a CD player (which weren't cheap in the mid-'80s) and some CDs to keep him company in the hospital. That was very cool of him.

Elton was just beginning his outspoken activism for AIDS victims when he met Ryan. I was moved when I read how Elton played "Skyline Pidgeon" at Ryan's funeral.

Thanks for bringing him up, Allison. You don't hear his name tossed around too much anymore.

Here is a link to his autobiography. Highly recommended.

[PZelda]

Originally posted by Janice
Ryan's story was very tragic. I remember Elton John befriended him.

Paul Michael Glaser of Starsky and Hutch lost a lot to AIDS.... both his wife and daughter died from the disease. His late wife Elizabeth did a lot for the cause.

From imdb:
Mini biography
Wife Elizabeth received HIV-tainted blood in a 1981 transfusion and unwittingly passed it on to their two children. Elizabeth became a fervent AIDS activist and spoke on AIDS at the 1992 Democratic convention. Daughter, Ariel, died at age 7 of AIDS in 1988. Son, Jake, is HIV-positive.

Wife Elizabeth was the founder of the Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

I remember that. I remember Ryan never wanted to be famous because he was sick...but it happened anyway. And he got AIDS from a tainted blood transfusion as well.

Originally posted by jpnoyes
I think the saddest movie I've ever seen was the Ryan White Story.

I never saw it -- I want to see it so I can see how they described his life...

Originally posted by AKA
I read Ryan White's autobiography when I was about thirteen. It moved me quite a bit. It was the first biography I was ever enthralled by.

What that boy went through was awful. He was very brave, though. He helped America realize that anyone could get AIDS.

In his book, Ryan writes about how he befriended people like Elton John (mentioned above) and John Mellencamp, who, like Ryan, was from Indiana. Ryan was a big John Mellencamp fan.

If I remember right, one day John bought Ryan a CD player (which weren't cheap in the mid-'80s) and some CDs to keep him company in the hospital. That was very cool of him.

Elton was just beginning his outspoken activism for AIDS victims when he met Ryan. I was moved when I read how Elton played "Skyline Pidgeon" at Ryan's funeral.

Thanks for bringing him up, Allison. You don't hear his name tossed around too much anymore.

Here is a link to his autobiography. Highly recommended.

I was the same age as you when I first began to read Ryan's autobiography. He went through soooo much hard times...Nobody would accept him after he got diagnosed w/ AIDS. They were all afraid he would give them AIDS too and they kicked him out of public school, so he had no choice but to be homeschooled. It finally got so bad that his family had to leave Kokomo (where they lived) and live in Cierco, where he was finally accepted there.

I just could NOT imagine living through what he lived through. I said it before, I'll say it again....What an extremely brave guy.

I've always been very fascinated by Ryan since I first began to read his book - his legacy deserves to live on and he is one of the major reasons we know so much about AIDS today.

[Janice]

A few years old, but I think this thread has potential.

[Janice]

Shonda Schilling, wife of Red Sox pitcher, Curt Schilling, is a skin cancer and melanoma survivor. She founded SHADE in 2002 after her successful battle against malignant melanoma.

The SHADE Foundation’s mission is to Protect, Educate, Encourage, and Implement appropriate sun safety policies to assist schools in developing and implementing a program to ensure all children spend their days in a SunWise environment.


http://www.shadefoundation.org/

[coffield3]

Originally Posted by AKA

Michael J. Fox has done wonderful things with his time for people with Parkinson's Disease.

Michael was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 1991, but didn't go public with it until 1998.

http://www.michaeljfox.org

Montel Williams is doing similar things for people with Multiple Sclerosis.

Montel was diagnosed with MS in 1999.

http://www.montelms.org

I agree there!!

[catlover79]

I totally agree with John Walsh. I always think that whenever I see AMW.

Lou Gehrig brought awareness to the horrible disease he suffered, ALS. Another man decades later brought his own battle to the forefront, Michael Zaslow of the soap opera Guiding Light. He was fired (despite being very popular AND an Emmy-winner), but he and his wife worked tirelessly with various charities and fund-raisers. I HIGHLY recommend their book, Not That Man Anymore.

ALS research has been a cause close to my heart since my grandfather was diagnosed in March 2001 and passed away in November 2002. I have no words to describe how awful that disease is. Anything I can do to contribute to finding a cure, I will gladly do so.

[Janice]

Originally Posted by catlover79

I totally agree with

Monika, why don't you tell us about the late Dick York's passionate cause. He was a wonderful man, worrying about others, while dealing with his own poor health.