Shane’s Story

It's one of the most well known diseases, named after a Major League Baseball Hall of Famer.

June 2nd is now Lou Gehrig Day in the big leagues.

Yet, the amount known about ALS is minor.

The odds of being diagnosed with ALS are closer to being struck by lightning than they are to getting cancer. Fewer than one in 10,000 people will get the disease and we still don't know who will, or when.

Based on statistics provided by the CDC and ALS.org, there are around 10 people living in the Tri-Cities combined with the disease at any given time.

Shane Smith had a funny feeling in his calves one July 4th, only got worse over time. Around 18 months later, Smith got the grim news.

"In January of 2023, I was diagnosed with ALS. Friday the 13th, coincidentally enough," says Shane.

A-L-S, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, makes nerve cells unable to function, so muscles are unable to move. There is no known cure.

"It was shocking," Amy Smith recalled. "We took the day, we spent that with our family and tried to process, wrap our minds around what we were hearing and what this meant for our family.

"We knew it was going to be hard to tell a 15-year-old, a 7-year-old, a 10-year-old, 'Hey, your Dad has ALS.'"

The kids not only took it in stride, they immediately jumped into action to help out their old man. "They're the toughest kids I've ever seen in my life," says Shane.

"My 15-year-old has to carry me at night from my stair-lift to my bed, until the construction is complete at our house where everything will be on the main floor here. There's no complaining. My other children, they want to help so badly," Shane adds.

It's a team effort for the Smith family, although there's certainly no give up in dad.

"I get on my scooter and I still go and I dress myself everyday," Shane said. "I get my shoes on, I tie my shoes, and I believe I'm going to do that as long as I can, because if it is working, I need to keep it working."

"I admire Shane so much," says Amy. "He won't stop fighting. He's like, 'I'm not just going to stay at home. I will continue to do as much as I can."

"Your mentality plays a huge role in this. You have to get up, you have to keep going, you have to keep faith," says Shane.

And for Shane, his belief is what gives him the motivation to battle.

"God made me a fighter when I was born, and that's what I'm supposed to do.

"He wants me to use my voice to get this out there, and sometimes it's going to be in ways that people are uncomfortable with," says Shane. "But that's the way it has to be."