A St. Thomas woman battling ALS is trying to raise as much money and awareness for the disease as she can, while she can.
Jackie Pasch, a mother of five, was diagnosed with ALS less than a year ago.
“It’s a daily battle you try to keep your spirits up and continue on but it’s always there."
She says her health has been declining ever since the diagnosis.
“My breathing quickly went downhill and my left hand has muscles wasting so I can’t use my left hand at all.”
It's something that her daughter Jerrica McLean says it has been hard for the whole family to watch.
“To see how much this disease has slowed her down is devastating and I can only imagine how it must feel for her.”
Pasch is one of around 3,000 people in Canada currently living with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
“It’s a terminal illness, 80 per cent who are diagnosed live between two to five years,” says Charlene Spector from ALS Canada.
The neuromuscular disease usually attacks the body fairy quickly as well, and “People lose the ability to walk and speak and [have] difficulty in breathing and their muscles become weakened.”
Pasch, who now uses a walker and wheelchair, knows the road ahead will only get tougher. For now her family is making sure that they surround her with love and support each day.
“My hopes are that I’m still around for awhile making memories.”
