Community Corner

Eat Pizza, Help a Family Cope

Fund-raiser to benefit the Cassin family deal with rising medical costs of ALS.

Need a break from the kitchen? Not in the mood to cook dinner tonight, Tuesday March 1? Then head to , north of Route 45 and Washington Street in Waterstone Place, 34500 North Highway 45 in Third Lake, for a fund-raiser for a local family fighting ALS.

The fund-raiser will help Jen Cassin of Lindenhurst and her family deal with rising out-of-pocket costs of fighting her ALS disease. They are spending approximately $1,000 per day for around the clock care for Jen in out of pocket costs to help keep her breathing and eating, according to friends. During all of this, Jen is awake and fully aware of what is happening to her and her family.

ALS, or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, is a serious neurological disease that causes muscle weakness, disability and eventually death. It is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in honor of the famous baseball player who was diagnosed with it in 1939.

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It is a relatively rare disease where ALS occurs in 1 to 3 people per 100,000 worldwide. It often begins with muscle twitching and weakness in an arm or leg, or with slurring of speech. Eventually, ALS affects the ability to control the muscles needed to move, speak, eat and breathe.

Friends have reached out to the Cassin family to help the family fight back against ALS through the tasty fund-raiser at Lou Malnati's. It is open to the public--feel free to share this story with friends.

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It is an easy way to give back and also provides a good meal for your family. Print out the attached flyer and bring it in when you pick up your food. Lou Malnati's will donate 20 percent of your order total on March 1 to the Cassins.

For more information on the family, see the article featuring the Cassins from the Les Turner  Foundation newsletter.

For more information, call Lou Malnati's at 847-231-5550.


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