Ice machines around the country have been working overtime lately to keep up with the demand for ice ever since the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge hit social media in July. Recently the wave of supporters participating in the challenge to raise money for ALS and build awareness about the disease hit the CMC campus.
CMC President Hiram Chodosh and CMC Associated Students President Ben Tillotson ’15 (pictured), Vice President for Student Affairs, Admission & Financial Aid Jeff Huang, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Director of Athletics, the William B. Arce Professor and George R. Roberts Fellow Mike Sutton ’76, the CMS women’s soccer team, the CMS football team and CMC and Stag football alumnus Augie Nieto ’80 P ’08 are among those from the CMC community who completed the challenge recently.
The challenge involves people on camera having a bucket or buckets of ice water dumped on them, posting that video to social media using the hashtag #icebucketchallenge or #ALSIceBucketChallenge, nominating others to do the same and then donating money to the ALS Association or an ALS-related charity such as Augie’s Quest, all in an effort to raise ALS awareness and to fund research. People can accept the challenge, make a donation to charity or do both.
As of Sept. 1, more than three million people have donated a total of $100 million to the ALS Association. In an average year, the normal operating budget for the ALS Association is around $25 million.
Huang, Sutton and the CMS football team were among those in the community who completed the challenge in honor of Nieto, who was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease) in March 2005. Since his diagnosis, Nieto, a prominent leader in the nation’s fitness industry for nearly three decades, has raised more than $40 million for the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s ALS Division through his charity, Augie’s Quest.
On Nov. 13, 2013, NBC’s Today Show featured Nieto and Augie’s Quest. Anchor Natalie Morales picked Nieto as her inspiration for a piece titled, “Inspired By.” The segment can be watched here.