Greg Shuck and Bob Oderkirk accepting Team CBC’s Circle of Distinction Award at the 2015 National MS Society’s Leadership Conference. From left to right: National Board Chair, Eli Rubenstein; Co-Owner of Carolina Brewing Company, Greg Shuck; Team Captain of Team CBC, Bob Oderkirk; and National MS Society President & CEO, Cynthia Zagieboylo.
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Fourteen years ago, Carolina Brewing Company started an ongoing partnership with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society that as of now has resulted in raising over one million dollars toward fighting the cause of MS. Owner Greg Shuck, whose wife has MS, started participating in the Bike MS campaign in 2000 in order to help raise money for the disease. Shuck keeps coming back every year with a reason: “I was brought up with the belief that if you have the means and opportunity to help others then you should. Running a brewery gives me that opportunity, and I have no intention of wasting it.”
This November owner Shuck and CBC Team Captain Bob Oderkirk attended the National MS Society Leadership Conference in Texas where CBC was inducted into the Circle of Distinction for its partnership and contributions toward achieving its vision of a world free of MS. Shuck said, “In all honesty I had no idea what an accomplishment it was. We have been fundraising for 14 years, and I never stepped back to appreciate what we have achieved. Being on stage with Bob Oderkirk in front of 1,000 people put it all in perspective. Several people came up to me throughout the weekend and thanked me for helping the movement. To talk and see the people we have been helping over the years was humbling and satisfying.”
Shuck also credits Oderkirk with growing the team through his energy and organization. Shuck said that Bob and Co-captain C.J. Rice, along with the core group of riders for Team CBC are “all friendly and encourage folks to come out and ride with us. Many friendships and a few marriages have come from people meeting up at the brewery, cycling, enjoying a beer or two and having a good time. It is a good group of folks, and I feel fortunate to have them associated with the brewery and the MS movement.”
Both Oderkirk and Shuck agree that more collaboration among breweries that already fundraise through Bike MS will accelerate success in raising more money for the mission. After the national conference, Oderkirk came away even more motivated to promote “synergy” among teams. Shuck said that he “would like the different cycling teams raising money for MS to work together better and support each other’s fundraising efforts.” He also said that CBC will be working with Raleigh Brewing Company to brew a collaborative beer on behalf of fundraising to find a cure. Shuck said, “the brewing community works together well, and I am hoping the cycling teams can as well. In the past, I have been too focused on our fundraising efforts and need to be more inclusive, as we are all working toward the same goal.”
Multiple sclerosis, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system, interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. The Society mobilizes people and resources so that everyone affected by MS can live their best lives as we stop MS in its tracks, restore what has been lost and end MS forever. To fulfill this mission, the Society funds cutting-edge research, drives change through advocacy, facilitates professional education, collaborates with MS organizations around the world, and provides programs and services designed to help people with MS and their families move their lives forward. “Research is going to find a cure in my lifetime, and the thought of my kids living in a world free of MS is what drives me,” Shuck said. The National MS Society greatly appreciates the impact that CBC has made on behalf of ending MS. Dani Clayton, Development Director of Bike MS of the Greater Carolinas Chapter, said, “We will be forever grateful for the support we receive from Carolina Brewing Company. Together we are stronger.”
Bike MS is the world’s largest cyclist series and is a national fundraising campaign on behalf of the National MS Society. The Greater Carolinas Chapter hosts three rides each fall: Historic New Bern, Tour to Tanglewood, and Breakaway to the Beach. Each year returning and new cyclists, alike, enjoy a weekend of good food, comraderie, and physical challenge, all while raising money to find a cure that will end MS. To date, Bike MS has raised $1 billion nationally, and in 2015 alone, the Greater Carolinas Chapter raised approximately $3 million. Please join the movement at one of our 2016 rides. Learn more and register for a Bike MS event near you at bikemscarolinas.org.
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Sarah Merritt is the Public Relations and Marketing Manager for the Greater Carolinas Chapter of the National MS Society. Sarah enjoys working for the Society and highlighting inspirational stories.
