Running for a Cure: Ridgefield Woman to Honor Dad in Marathon

RIDGEFIELD, CT —Erica Ippoliti of Ridgefield and Bill King of Fort Meyers, FLA., share a love for running that has bonded them and sparked many happy memories. The father/daughter duo has not lived near one another for several years, but would meet up to run races together; they completed the Hooters Half Marathon in Florida and the Marine Corp Marathon 10K in Washington DC. They always talked about running a marathon together.

This dream ended when Bill, at age 63, was diagnosed with ALS in October of 2017.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a rapidly progressive, terminal disease that causes muscle weakness, difficulty speaking and swallowing and, generally, complete paralysis.

"It has been really horrible and sad to watch," said Ippoliti, a substitute third grade teacher at Farmingville Elementary School in Ridgefield. "All I knew about it was the 'ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.' I did not know what ALS was, or how devastating it is."

Ippoliti is referring to the 2014 summer social media campaign-gone-viral, sponsored by the ALS Association to promote awareness and raise money for research on the disease. You may have remembered it as a bit of a goof, but the campaign raised an astounding $115 million in six weeks. A million of those dollars went to Project MinE, an international collaboration that set about sequencing the DNA of 15,000 ALS patients. In July, the Project had a breakthrough, pinpointing a particular genetic mutation that may be contributing to the neuronal degradation at the roots of ALS.

As encouraging as it may be to see the real traction gained by a campaign like the Ice Bucket Challenge, Erica Ippoliti and her father are well aware of how far science still is from a silver bullet. After her dad's diagnosis, Ippoliti and her husband scoured the internet, looking for clinical trials in which her father might participate. During that process, the name of the Les Turner ALS Foundation kept coming up.

"So I went through their financial statements to understand where the money goes," Ippoliti told the Patch.

Satisfied by what she saw in their books and impressed by the organization's programs for people affected by ALS and their loved ones, Erica joined the Les Turner ALS Foundation’s Team Race for ALS. Training for a marathon while simultaneously raising funds for ALS research seemed a particularly meaningful way to honor her father. She will be competing in the Hartford Marathon on October 13.

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“My dad is no longer able to speak, eat or walk, yet he remains remarkably positive, and manages to fully entertain my three young children through Facetime,” said Ippoliti. “The way he is coping with the disease is truly inspirational to me, and as I complete my runs, some as long as 18 miles, I am reminded of his strength and I channel that to get to me to the finish line.” To date, she has raised more than $6,800.

Contributions to Erica Ippoliti's ALS research fund raising efforts can be made at the Les Turner ALS Foundation's Team Race for ALS website.

Photo of Bill King and Erica Ippoliti provided.