ALS Ice Bucket Challenge 2015 Is Under Way! Donate Today

Last year the story of the summer was the Ice Bucket Challenge. ALS patient and former Boston College baseball player Pete Frates brought the fight into the national spotlight last year when everyone from Matt Ryan to Bill Gates to Taylor Swift participated in the challenge. This year the fight continues, and funds are desperately needed to fight this awful disease.

Yesterday the Red Sox kicked off the August fundraiser with an event at Fenway Park. Pete Frates, along with his wife Julie and daughter Lucy were on hand as the entire Red Sox organization completed the challenge. Red Sox VP Charles Steinberg talked about what Pete Frates means:

"When you have a guy on the field amid a sea of Major League Baseball players, and that fellow on the field hit a homerun into the right field bullpen in the baseball Beanpot and then later played at spring training for Boston College against the Red Sox and whose path to the majors was thrown this awful, wicked curve by ALS," he said of Frates presence. "And yet here he is, among the players, having hit a grand slam last year and coming up to bat yet again this year. It's a remarkable story of achievement and perseverance against the worst of odds."

This year MLB has taken on the challenge, which happened when Pete met with outgoing commissioner Bud Selig last year, and was taken on by current commish Rob Manfred. After the Red Sox completed the challenge they challenged the Los Angeles Dodgers, Red Sox fans and the Zac Brown Band.

If you want to make a donation to ALS research please visit the Pete Frates Fund website