Wings of Hope Supports ALS Research at Columbia University Wings of Hope, a benefit gala and auction organized by the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), was held at New York's famed Tavern-on-the-Green in October 2001. Toni Diamond and her husband, Warren Schiffer, initiated the event. Ms. Diamond, who has ALS, is committed to raising awareness and funds for ALS research. Their collaboration with the MDA in New York City resulted in one of the largest ALS fundraisers the MDA has sponsored to date in New York City. Ms. Diamond, a patient of Dr. Hiroshi Mitsumoto at the Eleanor and Lou Gehrig MDA/ALS Center, arranged for a cash award of $324,000 to be presented to Columbia University in support of research activities at the Center. This important and generous contribution will increase opportunities for scientific research focused on finding a cause and cure for ALS. Current ALS research at Columbia focuses on mechanisms of programmed cell death, use of stem cells to create new motor neurons, applications of molecular genetics to diagnosis, neuropathology studies, and development of novel therapeutic agents using a mouse model of ALS. The Eleanor and Lou Gehrig MDA/ALS Center, one of the nation's largest ALS comprehensive care programs, is committed to its four-fold mission of providing the finest patient care, researching the cause and cure for ALS and other motor neuron diseases, educating tomorrow's health care professionals and reaching out to the communities of the patients we serve. For more information of ALS activities at Columbia University contact Elia M. Desruissuaux, at 212-304-7200.