Nearly 200 members of the Jesuit community—from the St. Aloysius Gonzaga Chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS), Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica, and Jesuit Cheerleaders—gave up a few hours of sleep and braved the heat to volunteer at the Walk to Defeat ALS on Saturday, Oct. 11 at Zephyr’s Field.

Attracting hundreds of walkers and supporters from around the Greater New Orleans Area, the event went off without a hitch. Walk organizers called the Blue Jays’ involvement “incredible” and commented that they hope to be able to work together in the future.

Keeping with NHS’s pillar of service and Jesuit’s goal of forming its students as “men for others,” all members of the NHS make a commitment to perform one out-of-school service project each semester. In honor of Fr. Raymond Fitzgerald, S.J. who announced his diagnosis of ALS last year, and through the coordination of its newest moderator Mrs. Amy Tassin, whose family became heavily involved in the ALSA following the death of her sister to the disease a few years ago, the NHS has made volunteering at the Walk to Defeat ALS its annual fall service project, aiming to continue its participation for years to come.

Sponsored by the Louisiana/Mississippi Chapter of the ALS Association, the event lasted from 7 a.m. to noon and featured free food, music, and children’s entertainment for all walkers and their families. It surpassed the previous year’s fundraising total, raising over $120,000 to support the ALSA’s local care services along with its awareness, advocacy, and research efforts.

View the photo gallery.

Photos courtesy of Mrs. Jenny Johnson, D.J. Galiano ’07, and Ryan Roberts ’15.