b'Support Group Heroes Lately, there has been a lot of talk about heroes. First responders, doctors and nurses,bus and truck drivers, trash removal people, and store employees who made sure we couldpurchase food and necessary items even when our city and states had shut down because ofCOVID. Yes, these are very important people and denitely heroes, but in this crazy worldwhere multiple sclerosis is not a pandemic, but an ongoing and forever life-changingdiagnosis, I have come to know some heroes that shine every day. No, these people do not make the news. Rarely do they receive awards as to their commitmentor good deeds. However, I would like to acknowledge these people and give my deepest thankyou to them. I am talking about support group leaders. These leaders have MS themselvesand yet they volunteer to give support to others who are suering from the same thing. Iwould like to mention a few of them to show my gratitude for all they do.Leaders Susan Hedding and Diane Reaves of the Sequim MSSupport Group send out a newsletter to their members called MyelinMinutes. In it they share upcoming events, advice for staying safe,thoughts on volunteering. In fact, Susan wrote, I know that volunteeringreturns to me more than I give. She also said We are strongerSusan together. This is so true of support groups. DianeSandra Novak, leader of Northwest Arkansas MS Support Group started virtualgroup meetings and requested MS Focus sta to speak at one of them in May.Each month she sends an email telling what is happening and what is availablefor her group. She is involved with other organizations as well who alsoSandra provide valuable information.Lisa King, leader of Warner Robbins MS Support Group started virtual meetingsvia Zoom. The meetings were liked so well that she started having them twiceper month instead of once per month. This is a time to have a social gatheringswithout leaving home. We were invited to speak at one of the meetings in Mayto go over all the programs available through our organization. It was informal andLisa informative. I often see Lisa at teleconferences provided by MS Focus, as she iseager to pass new information on to her group.Were F**kin MS Warriors has more than 13,000 nationwidemembers in their Facebook MS support group. Administrator MikeFreeman never fails to send me monthly reports on members, topcountries, cities, and even times of day they participated. DesirCovaleski has weekly live talks, even now while she is transitioning toa new DMT and is very weak. This group shares their experiencesMike with doctors, treatments, medicines and everything else imaginable Desirand is so supportive of each other in all aspects.2'