Meet Legacy Society Member Allison Lardner
For Allison Lardner, Vice President of Field Development and Community Engagement, the ALS cause is very personal. “His diagnosis literally changed my life, my career… Everything.” He was Allison’s Grandfather, “Big Guy” as he was affectionately known.
Allison had never heard of ALS prior to his diagnosis. When she began looking into it further, the local ALS Association Chapter popped up, and she immediately reached out to them. “They were kind and supportive from the first moment,” Allison recalled.
That was just the beginning for Allison and The ALS Association. “In the Fall of 2006, we attended our first Walk. It will always be special to me because it was our family’s first walk, and the last time I saw my grandpa before he passed away a few days later.” It was their first walk, but not their last. In 2022, “Big Guy’s Bunch” walk team celebrated their 16th consecutive walk!
It is the full mission of The ALS Association that Allison not only experienced at the walks, but also embraces in her leadership role at the Association. “My views have evolved over the years. At first, I was focused on local care. Then it was our advocacy work.” Because ALS became a service-connected disease, Allison’s grandmother was able to receive military benefits.
Exhaustive research efforts and the growing pipeline of potential treatments has Allison truly inspired. “We used to talk about ‘if’ there will be a treatment for ALS, now we talk about ‘when’ there will be a treatment. It’s amazing!”
When asked about why she chose to make a Legacy Gift, it was fairly easy for her. “There is no cause that is closer to my heart…it seemed like an obvious choice,” she said.
Thank you Allison, for choosing to honor Big Guy with a Legacy Gift, and ensuring that our support of the ALS community will continue for years to come. To learn about how you can join Allison and hundreds of other Legacy Society Members, visit our website here or reach out to, Casey Saunders, Bob Smith, or Melissa McElvain.
