Ice Bucket Challenge held at Empire Casino

The 2022 ALS Ice Bucket Challenge took place July 31 at Empire City Casino in Yonkers. The event raises funds to help combat ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig”™s Disease.

Spano gets soaked in ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

More than 350 people doused themselves with five-gallon buckets filled with ice and water in the event that was co-founded by Yonkers resident Pat Quinn who wanted to raise awareness of ALS and the need for funds to expand research toward finding a cure.

Among the local leaders who attended this year”™s challenge event were: U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand; state Sen. Shelley Mayer; Assemblymen Gary Pretlow and Nader Sayegh; Westchester County Legislators José Alvarado and James Nolan; Yonkers City Council Members Tasha Diaz, Mike Breen and John Rubbo; and Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano.

Quinn had been diagnosed with ALS in 2013 and died in Nov. 2020. The Ice Bucket Challenge started to become a phenomenon in 2014.

Quinn”™s father, Patrick Quinn Sr., attended the Yonkers event and said, “The annual challenge for me serves as a beautiful tribute to my son”™s lasting legacy and everything he did to help move the needle in finding a cure for ALS.”

Since 2015, Empire City has hosted the annual challenge, donating the space, set-up and staffing costs, as well as over 1,300 pounds of ice. The city of Yonkers donates the buckets and the stage for the event and hosts online registration on its website.

The ALS Association reported that the Ice Bucket Challenge has raised awareness of the disease and the efforts being made to find a cure. It has produced an estimated $220 million in donations that otherwise would not have been realized.