Anje's Fearless Fight Against ALS

Hello!! Welcome to the GoFundMe page for #AnjesALSFight!

We are thankful for you to take the time to read our story, and greatly appreciate your support!

The year 2020 brought the deadliest pandemic in history. The COVID-19 pandemic also called the coronavirus pandemic, brought on illness, death and extensive lifestyle changes to millions of people in the first quarter of 2020. For most of the world, the year 2020 will always be remembered as the year the novel virus changed everything; but for Anje's family; we will always remember it as the beginning of our beloved Gigi’s (Ann “Anje” Anglin) journey of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

In December 2020, Anje was diagnosed with Covid-19, receiving a positive test on Christmas morning. After a week of typical covid-19 symptoms, she seemed to experience changes in her overall health such as extreme shortness of breath, slurred speech and muscle weakness. These debilitating symptoms not only continued but were steadily worsening as time went on. Anje began meeting with physicians of all specialties including neurologists, pulmonologists, and infectiologists to help diagnose and treat the decline in her functional abilities. Her days became filled with testing, scans, therapies, etc. Anje was even treated at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, but nothing seemed to explain the steady decline in her

health. The vigilance of her incredible speech pathologist landed her an appointment at the IU Health Neuroscience Center in Indianapolis. On March 1st, 2022, Anje was officially diagnosed with Bulbar onset ALS.

Anje is a vibrant and loving, self-proclaimed country girl, from Warsaw, Indiana. She loves being outside, caring for and raising animals; from goats, horses and pigs when her children were young, to her beloved dog, Cooper, who currently holds her heart. She’s the mother to Amber Bergman (Shelbyville) and Brandon (Jennifer) Harmon (Bargersville), and “Gigi” to Ty and Avery Bergman, and Wyatt, Brooks, Mason and Drake Harmon. Upon diagnosis, Anje was forced to retire from working as an academic advisor at Ivy Tech Community College in Warsaw and relocate to central Indiana to be closer to her immediate family. Anje and her family have realigned their focus from what ALS is taking away to what

God continues to provide. Anje is determined on making lasting memories and living a life of quality, rather than quantity.

To learn more about Anje on her ALS journey, click here to watch her YouTube video. 

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What is Bulbar ALS?

The ALS Therapy Development Institute states that “Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that attacks motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, leading to the wasting away of muscle and loss of movement.” The disease can present in different onsets; limb onset and bulbar onset. Bulbar onset is when symptoms first occur in the face or neck and tends to have a faster progression than limb onset. Early symptoms include slurred speech, difficulty chewing and

swallowing, and weakness or twitching of the face, jaw and throat. All of which our Gigi was experiencing at only 65 years young.

One way to understand the expected progression (and anticipated need for assistance) of the disease is to recognize that it affects motor neurons, which are the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. As motor neurons degenerate and die, they stop sending messages to the muscles. Eventually, the brain loses its ability to initiate and control voluntary movements. With progression, ALS patients lose the ability to stand, walk, chew, swallow, speak,

and eventually, breathe without complete assistance.

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How you can help #AnjesALSFight:

There is currently no treatment to reverse damage caused by ALS. However, supportive health care can be provided by multidisciplinary teams of professionals, along with assistive medical equipment,

physical and occupational therapies, and medications. With United States healthcare costs reaching the trillions, you can quickly recognize the incredible financial burden that ALS-supportive health would

bring to an individual and/or family. Based on reports from Science Diet, ALS has proven to have annual per-patient costs exceeding $70,000.

The financial obligations that Anje has been faced with have become an obvious burden aside from her daily living expenses. Electric wheelchairs can cost an average of $1500. Wheelchair-accessible vans can cost over $30,000. Monthly medication costs average over $5000. Unfortunately, the multitude of ALS expenses continue to pile up; all on a small, fixed income.

Our family is aiming to raise $30,000 to help ease the burden of expenses thus far, plus work towards purchasing a wheelchair accessible van. Funding raised will be deposited directly to cover those financial obligations mentioned above. Donations are so greatly appreciated.

Anje and her family are forever grateful to all that have shared her story, offered up assistance, provided prayer and support, and donated financially. We look to the future with hopeful eyes and grateful hearts.

If you or someone you know is interested in further assisting our fundraising efforts by hosting a third-party event or campaign, contact us at [email redacted]. Get creative, spread the word, and

help change the future of ALS.