Alabama NewsCenter — After losing her husband to ALS, Leslie Gafford helps others with their bucket list vacations

By Michelle Matthews
This is Alabama

If John Gafford hadn’t died on May 5, 2021, just two weeks before his 62nd birthday, he would be retired by now from his long career as an aerospace engineer. By now, more than likely, he and Leslie, his wife of 24 years, would have bought that small travel trailer they always wanted so they could fulfill their dreams of traveling anywhere they wanted to go in the United States and Canada, anytime.

Instead, Lou Gehrig’s disease stole everything from him: his retirement dreams, his mobility, his independence and, eventually, his life. ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that causes the brain to lose connection with the muscles. There is no cure or treatment, and the disease is always fatal.

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