Schilling pitches shirts for ALS
By Amanda J. Mantone/ Staff Writer
Thursday, October 13, 2005

The Red Sox may have blown their playoff bid last weekend in Chicago, but pitcher and Medfield resident Curt Schilling is still hoping to win some support for his favorite cause, Lou Gehrig's Disease research, with the sale of his "Why Not Us Again?" t-shirts.

Schilling debuted his T-shirt line last year during the Red Sox race for the World Series, selling tees emblazoned with "Why Not Us?" to raise money for ALS research. Though the Red Sox post-season run ended much earlier this year, the shirts are still on sale in either red or navy blue for $20, and the Schillings are hoping sales stay high even as Red Sox nation slides into the off-season.

"We had very strong sales the week they were playing against Chicago," said Scott Edelstein of the ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter. "It always builds as the excitement builds."

Curt Schilling was not available for comment.

Schilling's shirts, oft-imitated and huge sellers last year, are available only on Schilling's Web site, www.curtspitch.org .The original "Why Not Us" design, worn by Curt during the 2004 post-season, is still available for $10 each, as is a third shirt design that says "Anyone Can Win One," which Schilling sported throughout the 2005 Red Sox season. "Anyone Can Win One" shirts are available in pink or navy blue for $20 each on the site.

Sales of all the shirts benefits Curt's Pitch For ALS, the charity Schilling started while playing for the Philadelphia Phillies which now supports the ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter. It also benefits the Shade Foundation, a campaign piloted by Curt's wife Shonda to raise awareness and funding to prevent skin cancer.

The Schillings have supported research for ALS, or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, for more than a decade through the ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter, and even named their first son "Gehrig" after the famous New York Yankee slugger who died of ALS in 1941, and for whom the disease is now named.

ALS, or Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a terminal neuromuscular disease that strikes victims at random, usually targeting adults between the ages of 30 and 60. Initial symptoms include clumsiness, stumbling, trouble gripping things and slurred speech, and within two to five years from its onset, ALS weakens victims to a state of total paralysis. Their minds unaffected, ALS sufferers are effectively trapped in their own bodies as swallowing, breathing and talking abilities fail. There is no treatment or cure, but one FDA-approved drug - Rilutek - slows the progression of ALS modestly, according to the ALS Association Massachusetts Chapter.

So far this year the Schillings have raised $462,500, money that goes toward free loaner medical equipment for ALS patients, free telephone consultations, home visits and caregiver grants. Their goal is to raise $800,000 for research into a cure for ALS, which was first diagnosed 136 years ago but remains without a cure. This weekend, on Saturday, Oct. 15, the Walk to D'feet ALS kicks off at 10 a.m. at Wakefield's Lake Quannapowitt., and promises to be one of the ALS Association's largest fundraising events. For more information, visit www.thealswalk.org/alsamawalk . Walkers are still being registered.

"We have the walk coming up Saturday, and we're also going to be having our post-season reception where people can meet Curt Schilling," said Edelstein. "People can sign up at www.curtspitch.org , and tickets cost $400 for one person. You also get a Curt's Pitch shirt and a pin."

Proceeds from the post-season party fund ALS research and patient services. Pairs of tickets to the event, slated for the first week in November, are also available at $600 for the set. For more information on Curt's Pitch, to purchase a T-shirt or get tickets to the post-season reception, visit Schilling's Web site at www.curtspitch.org

For more information on Lou Gehrig's Disease visit www.als-ma.org.

Amanda J. Mantone can be reached at 781-433-8354 or amantone@cnc.com.

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