Pete Frates
Peter Frates (born December 28, 1984) is a former Boston College baseball player who was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 2012.[1] He is credited as the creator of the Ice Bucket Challenge, an activity involving dumping a bucket of ice water on one's head to promote awareness of ALS that went viral on social media during the summer of 2014.[2][3]
Biography
Early life
Peter Frates was born in Beverly, Massachusetts on December 28, 1984.[4][5] He is the second of three children of John and Nancy Frates.[6] He attended St. John's Preparatory School, graduating in 2003.[7]
College and baseball career
Frates attended Boston College, graduating in 2007.[8] While at Boston college, he played baseball and majored in communications.[6] He became the captain in 2007.[3] He also played baseball during the summer in Maryland, Connecticut and Hawaii.[6] After college, he went to Hamburg, Germany to play baseball in the German Baseball League while coaching German youth.[6][8] As of 2014, Frates is back at Boston College as the Director of Baseball Operations.[9] On April 13th, 2015 Frates signed a special lifetime contract with the Boston Red Sox, making him an official member of the organization for life.
Diagnosis with ALS and Ice Bucket Challenge
Frates was diagnosed with ALS on March 13, 2012.[8] Since then he has lost most motor functions and the ability to speak.[10] Upon diagnosis, he immediately began advocacy and fundraising work for the disease.[11] Pete Frates and his friend Pat Quinn, who was diagnosed with ALS in 2013, launched the Ice Bucket Challenge campaign in July 2014.[3] Both Frates and Quinn have been credited as the creators of the Ice Bucket Challenge.[2][12][13]
Personal life
Pete Frates married Julie Kowalik on June 1, 2013.[14] Their first child, Lucy Fitzgerald, was born on August 31, 2014.[15]
Awards
- Inducted into the St. John's Preparatory School hall of fame on November 20, 2012.
- Awarded the Stephen Heywood Patients Today Award in 2012 for his fundraising and advocacy work in increasing awareness of ALS.[16] Frates' Boston College and sporting connections became an initial focus of the Ice Bucket Challenge and strengthened its focus on ALS.[11]
- Named one of Nature's 10 "people who mattered" of 2014 on December 18, 2014, along with Maryam Mirzakhani, Radhika Nagpal, and others.[17]
References
- ↑ "Man Who Inspired Ice Bucket Challenge, Pete Frates, Welcomes Baby Girl". NBC News. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Goldberg, Eleanor (15 August 2014). "Meet The Guy Who Made ALS 'Ice Bucket Challenge' Go Viral". Huffington Post. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Gallo, Carmine (5 September 2014). "How Pete Frates Found His Calling And Launched The Ice Bucket Challenge". Forbes. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
- ↑ "Pete Frates Bio". bceagles.com. Boston College. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ↑ "Pete Frates Stats, Video Highlights, Photos, Bio". mlb.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Frates' Family (2014). "Pete Frates #3 Fund". petefrates.com. The Pete Frates Fund. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ↑ Williams, Matt (September 2014). "Around the Horn: Eagles committed to Frates' ALS cause". Salem News.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Frates, Pete (2 July 2014). "My Journey from Baseball Star to ALS Patient, 75 Years After Lou Gehrig". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
- ↑ "Pete Frates". Official Site of the Boston College Eagles. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
- ↑ English, Bella (15 August 2014). "Stricken with ALS, Pete Frates shows the will to live". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 English, Bella (August 15, 2014). "Stricken with ALS, Pete Frates shows the will to live". Boston Globe. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
- ↑ Cary, Billy (16 August 2014). "Reaction overwhelms Ice Bucket Challenge creator". USA Today. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
- ↑ Levin, Josh (August 22, 2014). "Who Invented the Ice Bucket Challenge?: A search for the fundraising phenomenon's cold, soaked patient zero". Slate.
- ↑ McCabe, Kathy (30 December 2012). "Together in sickness and in health". Boston News (Boston).
- ↑ Sweet, Laurel J. (1 September 2014). "It’s a girl for Ice Bucket founder Frates and wife". The Boston Herald. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
- ↑ ALSTDI (November 19, 2012). "Peter Frates (2012 Stephen Heywood Patients Today Honoree)". Retrieved August 22, 2014.
- ↑ Gibney, E.; Leford, H.; Lok, C.; Hayden, E.C.; Cowen, R.; Klarreich, E.; Reardon, S.; Padma, T.V.; Cyranoski, D.; Callaway, E. (December 18, 2014). "Nature's 10 Ten people who mattered this year.". Nature 516: 311–319. doi:10.1038/516311a.