Studley staff shows its heart in MS fundraising walk.

SOME people can no longer walk because of multiple sclerosis.

So about 13,500 others did it for them this spring in L.A.

The annual walk of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in Los Angeles, organized to raise money to help people suffering from multiple sclerosis this year drew about 13,500 participants from companies in the city and helped raised more than $1.5 million.

But to Stacy Wilder, who led a 40-strong team from Studley and raised over $16,000 for this event alone, the walk was more than a fundraiser. It was personal.

Wilder, who was recently elected to the MS Society board, has a cousin who was diagnosed with the debilitating disease.

"She is in her early 30s and lives in New York and when she was diagnosed with MS, it hit very close to home," Wilder said. "That's when I decided to use my resources to help the MS Society's cause."

Founded in 1946, the MS Society aims to end the effects of the disease by funding research to find the cause and cure of MS and offering better services to those afflicted.

In Southern California alone, 87,500 people suffer from multiple sclerosis.

The Society's annual walk itself was started 21 years ago and organized in 13 different locations around Los Angeles. This year, about 6,500 people turned up at the Exposition Park/Coliseum venue alone on April 9. Forty Studley employees met at 8 a.m. and walked three miles wearing Studley colors. Several brought their children with them. At the end of the walk, Wilder treated her colleagues to breakfast at a nearby restaurant.

Wilder's Studley 2006 MS Walk Team raised $16,500. Wilder raised over $6,600 of this amount on her own, through her campaign measures. The campaign itself raised a total of $1.9 million, surpassing the $1.5 million that the society hoped to raise.

Leon Lebusse, president of the Los Angeles chapter of the society, credited large corporate teams like Studley's and their dedication to the cause.

"These people act as ambassadors for the cause, especially with Studley" Lebusse said. "They understand things like accessible building design, which is important part in helping people who have difficulty walking, or sometimes cannot walk at all."

Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable and often disabling disease that affects the central nervous system of the human body. Its symptoms range from mild numbness to blindness and paralysis, with women more likely to fall prey to it than men.

The society funds research that could help treat the symptoms and the illness. The society plans to funnel over $50 million in the coming years into research, with the single biggest chunk going towards research in the neuron repair study, which evaluates the possibility of regrowing nerve ceils. Wilder and her team are currently working to raise an additional $2.5 million towards this cause.

Some other companies that help the society include Toyota, Sempra Energy, Northrop Grumman and KNBC (Channel 4) in Los Angeles.

"It affects people our age," Wilder said. "It is real, it is in your face and it is a struggle. To wake up each morning and not be able to get out of bed or hold your child--it makes you want to help."