BALTIMORE — The Brigance Brigade Foundation is hosting its annual race this weekend at Canton Waterfront Park, raising money and awareness for ALS, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
The progressive disease destroys motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, affecting a person’s ability to move, speak, eat, and eventually breathe.
The event includes a 5.7K run and a 1.57-mile walk, honoring former Baltimore Ravens linebacker O.J. Brigance, who wore No. 57 during his career.
“When O.J. was first diagnosed, we didn’t know anything about ALS,” said Chanda Brigance, co-founder of the Brigance Brigade Foundation.
O.J. Brigance, a Super Bowl champion, was diagnosed shortly after retiring from football.
“We had these big hopes of living a retired life, traveling, doing things together, reconnecting as husband and wife. You have these things going on in your mind, and then someone says, ‘Oh, but wait you possibly won’t be able to do any of those things.’ How do you process that?” she said.
While the average ALS patient lives two to five years after diagnosis, Brigance has been living with the disease for nearly two decades.
“To see him live through this blessing and to see others who may not get this time, it’s a tearjerker,” Chanda Brigance said.
Following his diagnosis of ALS in 2007, O.J. Brigance and his wife, Chanda created the Brigance Brigade Foundation. Funds raised from their annual race and walk go toward the foundation’s PALS (Patients Assistance and Life Support) Grant Program.
The program helps families cover the cost of in-home healthcare, medical equipment not covered by insurance, and home modifications that make daily life more manageable.
“When you help them, you help the family. It’s like a pebble in the water, once it goes in, it ripples out. ” Brigance said.
For the Brigance family, the mission has been decades in the making.
“O.J. and I have poured our time, energy, and our lives into this for nearly 20 years, not so we can be elevated, but so we can elevate others living with this disease. To whom much is given, much is required,” she said.
Event Details:
What: The Brigade 5.7K & 1.57M Family Festival
When: Sunday, May 3, 2026
Time: 8:00 a.m.
Where: Canton Waterfront Park
3001 Boston Street
Baltimore, Maryland
Click here for information on ways to register or donate.
