Man Who Inspired ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Dies at Age 46
Anthony Senerchia Jr., who was an
inspiration for the viral ALS Ice
Bucket Challenge, died on Saturday at the age of 46, ending a 14-year battle
with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
“He worked tirelessly to raise awareness for ALS and was directly responsible
for the world-renowned Ice bucket challenge,” his obituary said, calling him “a fireball who tried everything in
life.”
Senerchia was diagnosed with ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in
2003.
“It’s a difficult disease and tough when you’re losing,” his wife, Jeanette,
told the
Journal News Media Group. “Your body is failing you. But he was a fighter…
He was our light. He made our life better.”
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went viral and raised $115
million during two months in 2014 — money that went largely to
fund research. And Anthony Senerchia played a significant role in getting it
started.
When Jeanette Senerchia’s cousin, golfer Chris Kennedy, was nominated early
on to participate in the challenge, it was not yet specifically connected to
ALS. But when Kennedy passed along the challenge to others, he chose the ALS
Association as a beneficiary because of Anthony Senerchia’s battle with the
disease. It took off from there.
“What started out as a small gesture to put a smile on Anthony’s face and
bring some awareness to this terrible disease has turned into a national
phenomenon,” Kennedy told
TIME in 2014, “and it is something we never could have dreamed of.”
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