Valencia Construction Company Takes ‘Ice Bucket Challenge’ To Extreme

Posted by: Melissa Lampert-Abramovitch in Santa Clarita News August 23, 2014 - 12:17 pm 0 218 Views

Dozens of staff from a Valencia-based construction company took the ALS Association’s “Ice Bucket Challenge,” which is designed to raise awareness about the disease, to the extreme on Friday.

A tractor bucket filled with 400 pounds of ice and 1,200 gallons of water was dumped on 50 employees from C.A. Rasmussen, Inc. in an effort to raise awareness about ALS, which is also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease– a cause close to company owner Charlie Rasmussen’s heart.

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“We’re a construction company, and 25 years ago my father died from Lou Gehrig’s Disease,” Rasmussen said. “It’s a cause that our family has taken on and supported the awareness and the research to find a cure for the last 25 years. So today, in honor of my dad, all of our employees here at the office… have taken on the challenge as well.”

Company employees raised approximately $1,000 for the ALS Assocation, and company officials plan to make a “sizable” donation.

“It’s either get wet or write a check,” he said. “(That’s) the mantra today.”

ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a progressive disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, according to the ALS Association’s website. The progressive degeneration of motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to paralysis and death.

The ALS Association recently began “The Ice Bucket Challenge” campaign on social media in an effort to raise awareness about the disease.

Officials are encouraging people to take videos of themselves dumping a bucket of ice water on their heads and upload the videos to their social media accounts using designated hash tags.

“Take the challenge, donate and help us create a world without ALS,” read a statement on their website.

Ice Bucket Challenge donations reached $62.5 million on Saturday, according to their website.

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