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– Information found here was provided by the MS Foundation
– Facilitating One Heck of a Big MS Support Group Keeps Kevin Kelley Active
Diagnosed with MS over 11 years ago, Kevin Kelley is now retired from a high-stress job as an Internal Auditor for Brevard County. Rather than letting his MS keep him down, he says, today he wakes up daily and asks himself, “What can I do to make someone’s life easier, especially my wife’s? How can I make my home, community and my world better?”
With his goals in mind, a few years ago he took over the Central Brevard MS Self-Help Group as facilitator. The group is very active, holding year-round awareness events and fundraisers under Kelley’s direction. On May 19, for example, it will be MS Day at the Brevard Manatee Ballpark. Kevin and some members of his support group will set up an information table and sell wide-screen TV raffle tickets right in the breezeway to raise funds. Kelley laughs from past experience, “Even if the table has to be weighted down in 15-mile an hour winds.” Then they pull the winner during the 7th inning, and the ball park makes a grand announcement with full fanfare and the bleachers are awash with MS awareness.
As his group prepares to celebrate its 20th year, Kelley facilitates one of the largest MS support groups in the U.S. As far as membership, Kevin must be doing something right. He shared humbly, “I started attending health fairs and anywhere someone would let me put out a table with information about MS and our group. When I took over the group, we had about 65 members; our group now serves over 330 members and growing.” The people come and learn and share. But, Kevin shared, “One thing I stress in our group is that MS cannot be the cornerstone of your life. [Say to yourself] ‘Yes, MS is an important part of my life, but I cannot let it be the center of my life.’ Don’t let MS be an excuse for not living.”
He also added that being at the group is, “somewhere with others that are going through the same problems. It’s great when I can walk into a room and say ‘I’m having a MS day’ and they completely understand. Each member of our group is important part of our group.”
Kevin also believes his area support group is successful because, as he says, “We are like any other business. And I treat it as such. The difference is we are in the business of helping people with MS.” To keep people involved he has speakers frequently, offering anything from fire safety tips to chiropractic information, each explaining how their topic applies in respect to the patient’s MS.
He also shared a bit of know-how on starting a support group in your area, “Look for resources in your community. Be a wealth of information. Keep every business card that is ever given to you – you never know when that information will be needed. Also, keep your meetings informative and never allow the group to become a pity party.” He wants members to leave empowered and recharged, not sadder than when they arrived.
Central Brevard’s website: http://www.cbmsgroup.org
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