Gorilla Fund Bridges Gap

The combined dedication of some caring massage therapists and a handful of longtime golfing buddies in Rochester, New York, resulted in a $10,000 kitty that jumpstarted the charmingly named Gorilla Massage Fund to help people with multiple sclerosis (MS).

About 50 golfers played in the August tournament to raise money to provide massage and acupuncture to MS sufferers. “People with this disease often end up on disability and have huge [medical] expenses,” says Craig Danehy, a massage therapist and owner of Integrated Wellness Systems.

Danehy and John J. Cogan, a local insurance consultant, came up with the idea for the fund after Cogan’s golfing partner, Neal Wiesner, nicknamed The Gorilla for his wild golf

swing, was diagnosed with MS. Massage therapy was one of the only things to provide him with relief from nearly constant pain, Danehy says.

Seeing the results, some of the Wiesner’s golfing friends chipped in and raised enough money for 37 massages with Danehy or other therapists at his medical- and sports-massage clinic, at a discounted rate.

“That instigated the idea for the Gorilla Massage Fund,” Danehy says.

There was an outpouring of community support, he adds. Clients who read about the fund in local newspapers made donations. Alternative health-care providers from around the area called to donate and join a network of providers Danehy is forming to work on MS patients at discounted rates. Fund recipients will earn up to full reimbursement for therapeutic care not covered by their medical insurance.

“We want to cover the gap that the health-care system is leaving out. It is such a vital service that we provide, and people have a hard time affording alternative care when they have financial hardships or other expenses that come with chronic diagnoses and disability,” Danehy says.

— Kelle Walsh