Imagine being an athletic male in the mid 2000's, being told by coaches that with the right kind of work and dedication success is sure to follow. Then at the young age of 17 being told that you have Multiple Sclerosis, an often invisible but debilitating disease which affects the central nervous system. That is part of my story. My name is Lary McEwen and I have suffered the adverse effects of MS for the past 8 years of my life.

Until this point I have been admittingly stubborn in regards to taking medication or seeking outside therapies. I told myself and doctors that I was going to be an exception. I worked, and continue to work, as hard as I could and can physically, to maintain my strength, coordination, and balance. I have adjusted my diet time and time again to give myself the best possible chance at health. I still believe there is something powerful in maintaining the attitude where I will refuse to be beat, but MS is an unpredictable and little understood phenomena and it has decided to hit me quite hard. Hard enough that I am lowering my pride and seeking the help of all of you.

Over the past several years I have been unable to pursue my passions to the extent I was once capable. I played the large majority of my college basketball career fighting each day. Constant fatigue and numbness in my limbs made a sport that requires endurance and touch quite difficult, but none-the-less I always tried to push on. Eventually, the symptoms I was experiencing worsened to a state where I had trouble walking and I had lost control and coordination. These factors along with visual impairments forced me to the sideline. My story now is about giving back to a game and a community that I still very much love, just in a different and equally rewarding way.

Any support that will be offered to me will go towards my upcoming decisions about medications and toward the MS fundraisers I want to organize and promote. The events I plan to organize include a PRO basketball game against our community's best players and several sports and recreation clinics for disabled youth in my community. Some of the proceeds from these events will go towards the MS foundation for research toward finding a cure for all of those who are bound by Multiple Sclerosis.

With my sincerest request I ask for your support in my personal struggle, in the larger picture which affects millions, and in my goals to give back. If you have something to give, without compromising your own situations, and you believe in me and my anticipated efforts in raising awareness, please do. Any donation is appreciated equally. Your help means the world to many.

Thank you for your time in hearing part of this journey.