Major Virginia Developer Honors Son by Creating
Largest Walk to Defeat ALS Team on Record

Josh and his wife Joy.

Records were meant to be broken and in the case of The ALS Association’s national signature fundraising event, The Walk to Defeat ALS™, two were shattered on Sunday, October 19 at the Virginia Beach boardwalk for “largest team” and “most money raised.” 

Josh Thompson, a world class surfer and all around athlete, was diagnosed with ALS in 2007 at the age of 33. In his honor his father, major Virginia Beach developer Bruce Thompson, the CEO of Gold Key/PHR Hotels and Resorts, and his network of family, friends and business associates, including Josh’s mother, Kathy Thompson, wife, Joy, and brother, Chris, assembled the amazing “JT Walk” team.

The team Thompson, the owner of hotels, resorts and restaurants including the Hilton Virginia Beach Oceanfront, and the network created was “amazing” for several reasons. It was the largest Walk team in the eight-year history of the event ─ 7,000 people participated. And the team raised more than $600,000.

Top Fundraising Walk Teams: JT Walk Team $600,000 plus DC/MD/VA Chapter Virginia Beach Walk Duane Reade & NYY Team Up for ALS $157,067 Greater NY Chapter Woodbridge, NJ Walk For the Love of Jemma $121,814 Greater NY Chapter Long Island Walk Hakuna Matata $100,000 DC/MD/VA Chapter Washington DC Walk Fuller Friends $94,915 DC/MD/VA Chapter Washington DC Walk          Kids 4 Cure $80,000 Central & Southern OH Chapter Cincinnati Walk   Largest Walk Teams: JT Walk Team 7,000 team members DC/MD/VA Chapter Virginia Beach Walk Dobbers Up 844 team members Iowa Chapter Des Moines Walk Fuller Friends 547 team members DC/MD/VA Chapter Washington DC Walk  Glenn's Gladiators 425 team members NW Arkansas Chapter NW Arkansas Walk

The money the JT Walk team raised was donated to The Association’s DC/MD/VA Chapter for services and programs provided to people living with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Thompson, the captain of the team, also raised money for the Robert Packard Center for ALS Research at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.

“The national record-breaking Walk to Defeat ALS JT WALK team in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in honor of PALS {person with ALS} Josh Thompson, is both a loving tribute to Josh by his family and large network of friends and a testimony to what a difference one family can make in building community awareness about ALS and its devastating affect on people’s lives,” said Ken Nicholls, the executive director of The Association’s DC/MD/VA Chapter.

“The Thompsons, just like thousands of other families across the country, chose to participate in the Walk to Defeat ALS as a way to fight back and make a difference in finding a cure for ALS,” Nicholls continued. “One clear result is a community more aware of the impact of Lou Gehrig’s disease on their lives and the lives of their neighbors.”  

Prior to the “JT Walk” team, the largest team assembled was the 844-person Dobbers Up team that participated in the Walk in Des Moines sponsored by The Association’s Iowa Chapter. The previous record for the most money raised at a Walk belonged to the Duane Reade & NYY Team Up for ALS, which participated in the Walk sponsored by The Association’s Greater New York Chapter and raised $157,067.  

The tremendous success of the Thompson family's partnership with DC/MD/VA Chapter will serve as a motivator for other families challenged by ALS.

"The 2008 JT Walk team, led by Bruce Thompson in honor of his son Josh, is a strong example of the impact families and companies can make when they unite through the Walk to Defeat ALS program,” said Ashton Chase, The Association’s director of national signature events. 

This particular Walk will long be remembered for more than its size and outpouring of love for Josh, diagnosed with progressive, neurodegenerative disease in 2007. His brother, Chris Thompson, and his associates at the Virginia Gentlemen Foundation organized a spectacular post Walk Beach Party & Picnic. The bash featured a concert with national recording artists Big Head Todd and the Monsters and an oyster roast, bar-b-que and fun park for children.

The JT Walk team that gathered in Virginia for the Walk to Defeat ALS was comprised of 7,000 people who raised more than $600,000.

Each year, Walk to Defeat ALS events are held in 150 communities nationwide and include over 120,000 participants and volunteers.  Each of The ALS Association's 42 Chapters participates in the national signature event, collectively raising more than $80 million dollars since the program's inception in 2000. 

The ALS Association is a leader in the fight against Lou Gehrig’s Disease. The mission of the organization is to lead the fight to cure and treat ALS through global, cutting-edge research, and to empower people with Lou Gehrig’s Disease and their families to live fuller lives by providing them with compassionate care and support.

To purchase concert tickets online for the Beach Party & Picnic, visit http://cureals.alsinfo.org/netcommunity/Beach  For more information about the Walk and the Beach Party & Picnic, call toll free at (866) 348-3257 and ask for Cathy Easter.