Space
Hey kids, it’s our
own MS event!
by Patricia Wadsley
Alabama high school student Reid Black has been playing
piano since he was four years old.
When he was in grammar school,
his mother, Dori, drove him far
and wide to study with the best
possible teachers as his playing
evolved.
But over time, Dori’s MS
forced her to give up her full-time job as a pharmacist and
made it too tough for her to
drive long distances.
“My biggest worry was that
I wouldn’t be able to do things
for my children,” said Dori,
who also has a four-year-old and
an 11-year-old. “But the whole
family pitched in to help. When
I was at home taking care of Rian
and Riley Grace, my mom and
my mother-in-law were able to
take Reid to teachers and classes.”
Reid’s playing has taken
him from the orchestra at his
local First Baptist Church to
the Mobile Symphony Youth
Orchestra and finally to a pres-
tigious music festival in Orfeo,
Italy, with his piano teacher,
Tulane University’s Fiana Lush-
tak. Reid, now 15, wanted to
find a way to show his appre-
ciation for his mother, who had
been so supportive of his playing.
“I was talking to Dr. Carter,
my music coach,” Reid said, “and
we came up with the idea of a
benefit concert for MS. My mom
and I had been in touch with the
Society’s Alabama-Mississippi
Chapter, and now I had a way
that I could help.”
Dr. Carter got the high school
to donate the use of their new
752-seat auditorium and piano
for Reid’s fundraising recital.
That way, the proceeds of the
concert would go entirely to the
National MS Society.
“They had a brand-new Stein-
way,” Reid said, beaming. “It was
so great.”
Dr. Carter and Reid’s grand-
mother Claudia combed neigh-
borhoods as far as Mobile,
getting donations from local
Aaron Kithcart
(left) and
Jeremiah
Juso
Join the movement
your own way—
straight from your
heart. The Society loves
these DIY community
fundraisers.
It starts with an idea
Every year, people like Reid put
on their own do-it-yourself com-
munity fundraising events—from
chili cook-offs to golf tourna-
ments—to raise money for the
Society. Community events bring
in thousands of dollars—and
raise local awareness
about MS.
“It’s a great way to
get involved,” said Matt
Faulkner, community
and corporate relations
The art auction
businesses for the auction
that they held after the
concert was over. Contributions included gift
certificates from local restaurants and retailers—
one music store donated
a $700 clarinet.
When the concert started,
Reid’s mother, father and grandmother sat front and center. “I
cried,” Dori remembered. “It was
so beautiful. I saw my son using
his talents, skills and interests for
a good cause. What more could
anyone ask?”
coordinator for the Society’s
Ohio Buckeye Chapter. “Inde-
pendent events give people a
chance to do what they want and
what they’re best at.”
In southern California,
11-year-old Dylan Suciu planned
a Halloween party right in
