Overcoming limits and igniting hope. It is with this in mind that a sail has been held for 15 years to celebrate ALS Global Day. Promoted by the International Federation of Patient Associations of which the Italian Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association is a member as an Italian member, the World Day for the fight against Sla is celebrated every year on the day of the Summer Solstice, June 21st. A date chosen to underline the hope that on this day of change, a turning point may also come as regards the search for the causes, treatments and effective cures to defeat ALS.
And it is with this spirit that, on Sunday 18 June, the Elianto catamaran, an inclusive vessel built specifically for people with disabilities, set sail, followed by a swarm of sailboats. Over 200 volunteers, family members and supporters who went on the radar to the port of the Island of Elba, in the Cavo area, where it was possible for everyone, even people with ALS, to dive into the crystal clear waters. It is the sense of freedom that becomes the protagonist in this encounter with the immensity of the sea; a concept, that of freedom, which is linked to being outside the boundaries and spaces that the disease imposes. “Let’s celebrate this day – said the President of AISLA Fulvia Massimelli – with the eyes of hope.
Hope in research is, and always will be, boundless and limitless. This same hope, however, today must also take the form of a shared responsibility for an increasingly adequate care to guarantee and protect the quality of life of every family which, in Italy, is forced to live with a disease such as ALS”.
Finally, in the year in which 40 years of associative life for AISLA are celebrated, the month of June becomes the time to reflect on the value of awareness and World ALS Day represents its most concrete expression. The Cornflower, a rare flower like ALS, is the symbol of Global Day.
The official hashtag of this day, #ALSMNDWithoutBorders, embodies the idea of a society without obstacles and hope without limits.