To doctors, it's known as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, ALS for short. To most people, it's known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

But to ALS patients and their loved ones, the disease is known more for what it inflicts than by what it is called.

ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Over time, it robs patients of muscle coordination and physical mobility, while usually leaving their minds intact.

The prognosis for ALS sufferers is grim; life expectancy following diagnosis is generally between two and five years.

But even a grim prognosis cannot wipe away hope. It cannot touch a patient's willingness to fight - nor can it touch a community's desire to step into the fray.

On November 20, the Valencia Country Club will put that hope and that fighting spirit on display by hosting a golf event to raise money for the L.A. Chapter of ALS Association (ALSA).

Participants are invited to play a round of golf or enjoy a fashion show and wine tasting. Interested guests may opt for a banquet dinner or sit in on the event's live and silent auctions - all for a good cause.

The purpose of the event is twofold: Increase awareness of the disease and raise money to meet the needs of local ALS patients.

Raising awareness is critical. ALS remains tucked away in the recesses of the American consciousness, but it affects families across the country, including communities like ours.

According to SCV resident Dave Davis, member of the Greater L.A. Chapter Board of Trustees for ALS and event chairman, the local chapter serves close to 40 ALS patients in the Santa Clarita Valley alone.

"Most people are unaware of what ALSA can provide," he said. "So we want to promote the awareness of the ALS chapter and their services to local patients. The golf event affords us that opportunity."

One local ALS patient who benefits from the local ALS chapter is musician Eric Lowen, who was diagnosed in 2004.

"The doctor who diagnosed me told me about [the chapter] on the same day," Lowen said. "It's been invaluable. They provide equipment and a case manager. They have been very, very supportive."

Lowen understands that raising awareness is a slow process. Because life expectancy is so short, there aren't as many ALS sufferers compared to patients battling some of the better-known neurodegenerative diseases. Like so many ALS patients, even Lowen himself didn't know what he was facing at first.

"I had no idea what ALS was," he said. "All I knew was that Lou Gehrig had a disease named after him."

One of the chapter's most important functions is bringing patients together. Just being able to talk with people who really understand - people who have learned the same lessons - means a lot.

Until recently, Lowen and other local ALS patients have traveled to Pasadena for support group meetings. But no more.

The local chapter has started meeting on the first Saturday of the month at the United Presbyterian Church on McBean across from Henry Mayo Hospital in Valencia.

For more information on the local support group, visit http://webgla.alsa.org or Lowen's site at www.lownav.com.

As for the event's second purpose, the outcome should be immediately practical. The ALSA intends to use much of what it raises to continue providing for the tangible needs of local ALS patients. Wheelchairs, transportation and other medical equipment become increasingly necessary as the disease progresses.

Davis wants to meet those needs. So too, he hopes, do the residents of Santa Clarita.


For golf registration information, call the ALS Chapter office at 818-865-8067.