A library’s responsibility is to flood the community with information and to encourage the local residents to absorb as much knowledge as possible. In the spirit of spreading the word, representatives from The Boone Area Library accepted the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge 3 p.m. Friday, Aug. 22 after one library employee was nominated to participate. He accepted and chose to nominate library director Wayne Lahr.
‘Shaun (Kern) was challenged and he challenged me, Cheryl (Martinozzi) was also nominated, so I thought we should all do it together,’ Lahr told Berks-Mont Newspapers. ‘It’s a worthy cause. Hopefully this helps to the get the word out educate people on what ALS is.’
According to the website, alsa.org, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a ‘progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.’ Recently, the Ice Bucket Challenge has gone viral over the Internet, as it seems just about everyone from celebrities to your neighbor down the street are uploading videos of themselves pouring a bucket of ice water over their head. The purpose is to raise awareness for ALS and encourage donations to fund research to find a cure for the disease. Once nominated, there is a 24-hour time period to complete the challenge yourself by dumping a bucket of ice water over your head and nominating three others. If the idea of the ice bucket intimidates you, participants are asked to donate to the research foundation.
Library representatives Shaun Kern, library staff, Cheryl Martinozzi, board member, and Wayne Lahr, library director, accepted the challenge and were each doused with a bucket of ice water by Bryanna deTurck, Cierra deTurck and Jesse Enck.
Martinozzi was challenged by her friend and nominated her fellow board members of Berks County, in addition Kern, who was also challenged by a friend, passed along the challenge to all the patrons of the Boone Area Library. Lahr challenged his fellow library directors of Berks County.
‘It lasted a long time….I feel refreshed now!’ Martinozzi said after recovering from the ice cold water being dumped over her head.
From drenching themselves in buckets of ice water, Lahr hopes to create more awareness and encourage the community to donate for ALS research.
As of Saturday, Aug. 23, the ALS Association received $62.5 million in donations thanks to the awareness of the Ice Bucket Challenge. The Boone Area Library is accepting donations for The ALS Association.
For video of the Boone Area Library representatives doing the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, visit tout.com/southernberksnews.
