Frates Family Kicks Off Ice Bucket Challenge Month
BOSTON (CBS) - Crowds gathered at the Seaport Common, armed with buckets filled with ice. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge event Friday afternoon was hosted by Julie Frates in honor of her late husband, Pete Frates.
"Seven years out and people are still interested in doing this and supporting our cause. It means a lot," said Julie.
"Amazing. Really cold, but I loved it," said first time participant Kayla Breault.
Another participant, Luis Ayala, said, "it was awesome to have everyone together and just show some support and love."
The Frates family has lost track of how many times they've done the challenge, with six-year-old Lucy Frates guessing the number at "a hundred million."
But for Julie and her daughter, the event is a reminder of Pete and his mission to raise awareness for the disease before it ultimately took his life in 2019.
"We ask people if they're going to participate to either Google what ALS is or inform someone else what ALS is and obviously donations are greatly appreciated," said Julie.
"They call ALS Lou Gehrig's Disease but they're going to call it "Pete Frates' Cure." Here is a man that raised $220 million for ALS research in 2014," said Casey Sherman, co-author of "The Ice Bucket Challenge: Pete Frates and the Fight Against ALS."
The event kicks off "Ice Bucket Challenge" month in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which starts on August 1.
"I tell people still it will never become real. It's so hard to fathom the money that was raised and the impact it's had on the disease is astonishing. I have no doubt that there will be a cure and it will be credited to Pete," said Julie.
For information on the Peter Frates Family Foundation, visit: https://petefrates.com/donate/