*It has been a hot minute since I updated this blog and there is a lot to catch up on. That will come later this week. For now, I couldn’t let this day go by without remembering where I was a year ago…
One year ago today, Daytime United to End ALS! More than 30 stars of daytime came together for the day-long event, which was held at the Embassy Suites in Glendale, California, and hosted by my treasured friend Nancy Lee Grahn (Alexis Davis, General Hospital). The event, the brainchild of Nancy, was held to support ALS ONE’s mission. After several wildly successful online events in support of ALS ONE, Nancy wanted to step it up and suggested holding an in-person event in Los Angeles, and the foundation was laid for this amazing experience.
After months of hard work and preparation, Jen DiMartino, Ashley Corbin, Dani Bishop, and I traveled to Los Angeles a couple of days before the event—a feat that was made possible with the help of Ron Hoffman and CCALS, who made sure I had the proper equipment to make travel doable, and JetBlue, who made the trip easy and comfortable.
The day of the event was both magical and successful, raising more than $65,000 for ALS research and care. It was a blessing and an honor to meet and spend time with so many amazing people who came together for such an incredible cause, from all the actors and actresses to East Bay Soul, who put on a phenomenal show for us later that evening, to all the wonderful fans who came from near and far to take part in this special event, to the amazing volunteers, including Joanie, CC, Katie, and Nancy A.
So many people came together and worked to make this event happen, and I feel blessed to have made some amazing friends along the way. Ashley, Belinda Bast, and Angela Coutoumas worked tirelessly to make this such a wonderful event, and I am beyond grateful to them for their hard work, but more importantly, for their friendship.
And the cherry on top for me was when I discovered that Jonathan Frakes (Commander Riker of the Starship Enterprise!), husband of soap legend Genie Francis, would be emceeing the event. While I was admittedly fangirling a bit (and my inner Trekkie tried hard not to geek out too much in front of him), he could not have been more gracious. And given that the event was held on May the Fourth, he wasn’t at all offended—and was even amused—by the fact that I attended the event wearing my most awesome and beloved Star Wars sneakers!
The whole trip was the experience of a lifetime. Indeed, the only thing missing from the day was Gregory Harrison, who had a prior commitment and was unable to attend. Gregory portrayed Gregory Chase on General Hospital, a character whose storyline included being diagnosed with ALS. I’ve been a fan of Gregory’s since his time on Trapper John, M.D., all the way back in the 80s, and I was sad to have missed the opportunity to tell him how much I loved how he played Gregory Chase and to thank him for the poignant and dignified performance he gave. Though the powers that be did a huge disservice (in my humble opinion) to Gregory, to the character, to the storyline, and to the fans, by killing him off prematurely by way of a heart attack(!) instead of letting the story play out, Gregory’s portrayal was nuanced, beautiful, and inspired, and I do wish I’d have been able to tell him that.
The trip was successful and wonderful and an experience I am so thankful for and certainly one which I will never forget. But maybe the coolest part of my time out there was that I was able to meet up with Emily, my fellow Wamp from BHS, Class of 1990. It had been years since I’d seen her at one of our early class reunions, and knowing she lived in California, I reached out to her to see if she was anywhere near where we were holding the event. As it turns out, she lives mere minutes from the hotel and we ended up meeting for dinner the night before the event, and it was wonderful! Getting the opportunity to meet some of my favorite actors from a show I’ve watched for more than 45 years was incredibly cool, but connecting with a childhood friend under such crazy circumstances was beyond special. Coincidentally, Emily works as a neuropalliative care nurse practitioner, which made the reconnection even more meaningful. I’m so happy I had the opportunity to meet up with her after all these years!
A Thank You Video:
A heartfelt thank you to Nancy Lee Grahn, Parry Shen, Cynthia Watros, Melissa Claire Egan, Christian Le Blanc, Peter Bergman, Tabyana Ali, Evan Hofer, Annika Noelle, Carolyn Hennessy, Patrika Darbo, Lisa LoCicero, Michael Easton, Genie Francis, Maurice Benard, Maura West, Laura Wright, Rebecca Herbst, Lydia Look, Tanisha Harper, Dominic Zamprogna, Jason Thompson, Trevor St. John, Stephen Nichols, Don Diamont, Kate Linder, Kate Mansi, Kristen Vaganos, Lane Davies, Adam Harrington, and East Bay Soul!
And a few more pics…
Rise Against ALS! 