Upon hearing that one of my favorite Baldwin Junior High School teachers, Kathy Johansen, was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS,) I was shocked; I have already witnessed this terminal disease with my grandmother, and I would not wish it on anyone.

Because of her first-hand experiences with my grandmother, my mother was there to inform and educate Johansen about the disease. My mom wanted to give Kathy the information that we didn’t have when we were first faced with ALS.

I watched my maternal grandmother deteriorate before my 13-year-old eyes; her speech was slowing and slurring, sounding like she was drunk. She began getting confused and having problems with her memory.

When she started having trouble with her muscles growing weaker, she saw a few doctors, who came to the diagnosis of ALS accompanied by dementia and a predicted life span of 2 to 5 years.

In the span of a year and a half, my grandma lost her ability to speak, became completely dependent, was admitted to a nursing home and eventually died.

After her death, my mother continued to be involved in ALS support groups and followed the latest research. She began looking into the family’s history and discovered that there were a few instances when members died shortly after having some sort of ailment.

Given that my grandmother’s brothers died of ALS also, we decided to look into researching. As a result, we discovered we had an inherited ALS gene from my grandmother’s side.

Johansen's friends recently held a walk/run event that raised approximately $6,000 to fund possible stem-cell treatment. At the event she challenged her family members to the ALS ice bucket challenge, where they must dump a bucket of ice water on their heads or fork over $100 to ALS research.

I am encouraged at how this challenge has gained popularity recently, trending on Twitter with thousands of people participating, bringing ALS awareness and donations.

Celebrities like Justin Timberlake, Dierks Bentley, Martha Stewart and many more have done the challenge. It is so amazing that Ethel Kennedy at 86 years old did the challenge and then challenged President Obama.

ALS has devastated lives, but it has brought together communities and families to defeat a common enemy.

My family and I did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and I have challenged my Baker friends. Will Baker accept the challenge?