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Jewish pedal pushers unite to fight MS

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Message: If you are having trouble reading this email, you may view this article online at: http://www.jweekly.com/30041/full/30041/jewish-pedal-pushers-unite-to-fight-ms/ Jewish pedal pushers unite to fight MS Friday, August 11, 2006 | by dan pine When Dan Siegel mounts his LeMond "Versailles" model bike, he looks every inch the competitive cyclist. But Siegel's toughest race is not on the open road with fellow riders. It's his battle with multiple sclerosis. Diagnosed four years ago, the Berkeley resident and Netivot Shalom congregant knows well the ravages of the disease. His mother succumbed to MS in 2000 at the age of 60. So far, he is largely symptom-free, but he knows that could change any time. That's why he's doing all he can to fight the disease, including organizing a cycling team for Waves to Wine, one of several annual 150-mile bike tours sponsored by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society's Northern California chapter. The fundraising event takes place Sept. 9 and 10, winding through Napa and Sonoma wine country, down the coast and ending up in Petaluma. Cyclists of all skill levels will participate. Last year, 13,000 riders joined in. "This combines several of my interests," he says, "one being community building. I've been active in that with my synagogue, and I want to do more. And as I have MS myself, this is a way to deal with it, to turn a serious disease into a positive." Seigel predicts his team, the Mitzvah Milers, will be one of the largest participating, with up to 50 cyclists drawn from across the Bay Area Jewish community. Last year, with 18 riders, the Mitzvah Milers raised $23,000, the third largest sum of any team in the event. Seigel fully expects to top that figure this year. Besides Congregation Netivot Shalom, other synagogues contributing riders to the Mitzvah Milers are: Kehilla Community Synagogue (Piedmont), Temple Israel (Alameda), Beth Ami (Santa Rosa), Beth Israel (Berkeley), Temple Beth Abraham (Oakland), Temple Isaiah (Lafayette), Beth El (Berkeley), Beth Jacob (Oakland), Temple Sinai (Oakland) and Peninsula Temple Sholom (Burlingame). Though he is asymptomatic, Seigel says MS is an unpredictable disease. "Everybody's different," he says. "It could be mild or horrendously severe. I have it about as good as you can." Joanne Newman, the president of the local chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, says Waves to Wine is an important part of her agency's annual fundraising, with a goal of $1 million for this year's ride. "There are a lot of Jews in the community with MS," she says., "Our client base is over 10,000, and nationally about 400,000 [MS patients]. We believe there is an opportunity here to make people more aware." Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, often disabling disease of the central nervous system. Symptoms may be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe enough to cause blindness or paralysis. There is no known cause or cure, but treatments are available, and patient care has improved over the years. "The medicines are expensive," adds Newman. "More than $2,000 a month. Our work is divided into development, advocacy and programs/client services. We offer a full network of support, including financial aid when necessary." Fortunately for Dan Seigel and his family, that's not necessary. A successful consumer/class action lawyer, Seigel is a native of Reno, Nev. ("that Jewish mecca," he laughs). He met his wife, Traci, at Penn State. The couple moved to the Bay Area, later having two children. They joined Netivot Shalom and got involved with Jewish life. Recently he organized a synagogue jazz/klezmer band (he plays trombone) and he spearheaded the first congregational retreats. Fifteen years ago, Seigel first noticed some tingling and mild weakness, which turned out to be the early signs of MS. "Nothing happened for 10 years," he recalls. "I kind of forgot about it. Then a few [symptoms] happened again." He points out this is a "prime of life" disease, often striking people in their 20's and 30's. But it is the prime of life, and as long as Seigel can push those pedals, he'll be living life to the fullest. Living with MS isn't easy, even for someone asymptomatic like Seigel. But being stricken hasn't been a wholly horrible experience. In fact, notes Siegel, there's even an upside. "The uncertainly of MS spurred me on to do things," he says. "Most of the things I'm doing now I wouldn't have otherwise." For more information on Waves to Wine or the Mitzvah Milers, contact Congregation Netivot Shalom at (510) 549-9447 or the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Northern California Chapter at (510) 268-0572 or online at <a href="http://www.nationalmssociety.org/can/home">www.nationalmssociety.org/can/home</a>.

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