Lowen and Navarro’s Eric Lowen dies of ALS at 60

Via Scoop.it – ALS Lou Gehrig’s Disease
Eric Lowen, 60, a singer, songwriter, guitarist and half of the Lowen and Navarro folk group who with his songwriting partner Dan Navarro penned “We Belong” for Pat Benatar, died Friday at Kaiser Permanente Panorama City Hospital, the band announced. Lowen had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, in 2004. The degenerative disease affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and eventually weakens muscles throughout the body. Born Oct. 23, 1951, in Utica, N.Y., Lowen met Navarro in Los Angeles in the early 1980s when they worked as singing waiters at the Great American Food and Beverage Co. After they discovered they harmonized together well, they began performing and writing songs as a duo. The pair wrote “We Belong” for Benatar in 1984 and it became a top-five hit for her. Lowen, who was tall and blond, and the dark-haired Navarro regularly sang their acoustic versionin concert. The two also wrote for such pop acts as the Bangles, Dave Edmunds and David Lee Roth, and they composed jingles for commercials and TV shows. Beginning in 1988 Lowen and Navarro played a regular acoustic gig at the Breakaway in Venice, and they released their first album, “Walking on a Wire,” in 1990. They released a handful of studio albums and toured extensively until 2009, when Lowen’s condition worsened.

Via latimesblogs.latimes.com

Fred Pirkle, 66, inventor and founder of company

Via Scoop.it – ALS Lou Gehrig’s Disease
Fred Pirkle’s inventive mind was still cranking out ideas for new creations even as the rest of his body had virtually shut down due to a fast-moving form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, more familiarly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Lately, those efforts were focused on ways to help those like him whose motion was limited by disease or stroke. On Friday, March 9, three weeks after Mr. Pirkle turned 66, the founder of Therm-Omega-Tech Inc., a manufacturer of temperature-control valves in Warminster, died at his home in the township. At the ALS Association, Greater Philadelphia Chapter, executive director Jim Pinciotti praised Mr. Pirkle Friday for working “diligently to invent items to help himself and others living with this devastating neurodegenerative disease. . . . He was and remains an inspiration to us all.”
Via www.philly.com

Minnesota state Sen. Gary Kubly dies of ALS

Via Scoop.it – ALS Lou Gehrig’s Disease
Minnesota Sen. Gary Kubly, DFL-Granite Falls, who had suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease), died Friday, according to a message sent to legislators Saturday afternoon.Kubly, 68, had undergone a medical crisis Wednesday morning and was being treated at Regions Hospital in St. Paul. Gary was a dedicated public servant and an outstanding leader,” Gov. Mark Dayton said Saturday in a statement. “He lived his life with quiet strength and principled dignity, as evidenced by the remarkable courage with which he faced his final illness. He is an inspiration to all of us who knew and worked with him.” Kubly, a Lutheran pastor, was first diagnosed with the neurological disease in 2010. At the start of this year’s legislative session, Kubly had programmed his iPad to speak a message of thanks for him.
Via www.startribune.com

ALS Researcher Who Died of ALS Honored with New Research Fellowship

Via Scoop.it – ALS Lou Gehrig’s Disease

The American Academy of Neurology Foundation and The ALS Association are announcing the creation of the Richard Olney Clinician Scientist Development Award in ALS, named after Richard K. Olney, M.D., a leading neurologist and pioneer in clinical ALS research who died late last month of ALS, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease. We came together to create this research fellowship in record time as a tribute to Dr. Olney, not only as a courageous person, but one whose pioneering ALS research improved the lives of many people diagnosed with this dreadful disease that gradually robs the body of its ability to use its muscles,” said John Mazziotta, M.D., Ph.D., Chair of the American Academy of Neurology Foundation’s Board of Trustees and Professor and Chair of UCLA’s Brain Mapping Center in Los Angeles. Applications for the $240,000 research prize will be accepted through October 1, 2012.
Via www.sfgate.com