Volunteers are needed to help with the Walk to Defeat ALS of Siouxland this year — and into the future.ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a disease of the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement. The 3.1-mile Walk to Defeat ALS of Siouxland will be 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11 at the Le Mars Community High School track with registration at 12:30 p.m.Volunteers are needed on the day of the event — but even more importantly for the future to ensure the walk continues, said Nicole Bylsma, a walk committee member.”We’re still looking for some volunteers to do the walk next year, to form the committee, to be the chairs,” she said. For the last couple years, Bylsma said her sister, Allison Gollhofer, has been chairwoman of the event and their families have been recruited to help — but they may not be able to continue. Their dad, Steve Scholten, who grew up in Le Mars and now lives in Alton, was diagnosed with ALS in 2006. “Our dad is getting sicker and we are taking care of him during the week,” Bylsma explained.The two sisters also each had a baby recently, she added. “We’re hoping somebody can step up and take our place,” Bylsma said. “Usually they have one person that’s the chairperson. We have to have five committees covered.”Those committees perform tasks such as taking care of organizing the walk, nailing down corporate sponsors and getting the word out, she said.When it comes to this year’s walk, the Sept. 11 event is already planned complete with entertainment.There will be a DJ, sweet treats, water, a clown for the children and a silent auction.People wanting to register to participate either as teams or individually can do so until the start of the walk on the website walktodefeatals.org. “We’re hoping each walker can raise $25,” Bylsma said. “The money that we raise goes toward research and toward patient care.”Holding a walk is to support ALS victims, most of whom can’t walk, she explained.”We walk because we can,” Bylsma added. This will be the first year the walk is held in Le Mars, previously it was in Sioux City.”Le Mars is more centrally located than Sioux City,” Bylsma said. “We thought it would be easier access to the people who are walking.”In the past, walkers have come from places such as Le Mars, Sioux Center and Marcus, she said.The Walk to Defeat ALS of Siouxland is sponsored by the ALS Association Iowa Chapter, which also holds a walk in Cedar Falls and Des Moines, Bylsma said.According to a fact sheet, every 90 minutes someone in the United States is diagnosed with ALS, every 90 minutes another person loses his or her life to the disease, care for one ALS patient can cost up to $250,000 a year, the average life expectancy post diagnosis is two to five years and there is no cure for ALS.The Walk to Defeat ALS of Siouxland is supposed to be an annual walk, but due to a lack of volunteers in the past it has missed that mark, Bylsma said.That’s why she’s asking the public for help. “The more volunteers you have, the easier it is,” she said. For more information or to volunteer call Gollhofer at 712-540-3143 or email her at .