Advocate who inspired Ice Bucket Challenge continues to raise funds and awareness
The world lost a true hero on Dec. 9.
Pete Frates was an inspirational young man who continued to fight for the betterment of humanity even as his body failed him.
The creator of the Ice Bucket Challenge, which raises awareness about and funds to help find a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), lost his battle with the affliction three weeks before his 35th birthday.
Frates was diagnosed with the devastating disease that robs its victims of their muscle function at the age of 27. Like Gehrig, who was forced to retire from the New York Yankees at 36 years old, he was a star baseball player who captained Boston College. Also like the Iron Horse, Frates spent the last years of his live advocating for those stricken with the disease. And, like Gehrig before him, Frates didn’t let the disease define him; he worked for as long as he was physically able.
Following the famous speech that signaled his retirement from baseball in 1939, Gehrig wrote, “Don’t think I am depressed or pessimistic about my condition at present … I intend to hold on as long as possible and then if the inevitable comes. I will accept it philosophically and hope for the best. That’s all we can do.”
Frates maintained a similar outlook. He held on as long as he could and in 2014 invented the Ice Bucket Challenge. The challenge, which involved people either having others dump buckets of ice water over their heads or doing it to themselves, went viral on social media platforms. At least 17 million people, many celebrities among them, were known to have participated in the activity, which raised more than $200 million for the cause.
Frates’ legacy will be honored in short order with the annual Plunge for Pete, held every year on his birthday (Dec. 28) in order to raise money to fight ALS. Participants will take a chilly dip into the Atlantic Ocean off the Massachusetts coast, a fitting backdrop for remembering a young man who did so much to help others.
