Port Adelaide’s vice-captain Brad Ebert and sister Ashleigh recently joined with supporters of Motor Neurone Disease sufferers to raise awareness of the disease as part of the Walk to D-Feet MND.

Motor neurone disease, or MND, is the name given to a group of incurable diseases where the nerve cells that control the body’s muscles – the ones that allow us to move, speak, breath and swallow – begin to degenerate and die.

Without those neurones, these basic motor functions of the body decrease and result in a range of symptoms that slowly worsen as the disease progresses.

Brad and Ashleigh’s grandmother Lorraine suffers from the disease and it’s why Brad and Ash took part in the Walk to D-Feet MND at the weekend.

For the Eberts, being part of a support network united in raising awareness for an often silent cause was something both insightful and enlightening.

Like many diseases that impact the community, it showed them they were not alone in their commitment to supporting loved ones through difficult degenerative problems.

“For me, having my grandma affected by motor neurone disease affected the family strongly,” Brad told portadelaidefc.com.au.

“You see it all first hand and there’s really no cure for it as your body slowly deteriorates.

“It’s really hard to see your grandma go through it and because there’s no obvious signs of the degeneration, there’s little recognition in the community for it.

“To speak to people about it on the Walk and get an understanding about it was quite special for us, like many illnesses it was good to get an understanding about what other families go through as they support their loved ones.

“It also seems quite prevalent within the community, so it was good to be part of a large group of a couple of hundred people raising money and awareness for it.”

Research has showed early intervention can ease the burden of living with motor neurone disease to prolong life, however there is no cure for the illness.

Ashleigh was motivated to become involved in the MND support network when she saw Lorraine take ownership of her condition and work to make her life as manageable as possible.

Raising awareness of the disease was a small way she could show her support for her grandmother alongside others who were going through similar difficulties with their own families.

“I saw Nanna take ownership of her illnesses and start having treatments like Pilates to improve her strength and balance and decided with Brad that we should take some action to support her as well,” Ashleigh said.

“All of our family are very present in her life but Brad and I wanted to make a difference as well and raise awareness proactively within the MND community.

“That’s why we did the Walk to D-Feet on Sunday and it was really special to be part of a community that raised funds for the community.

“The money raised will go towards providing better services for sufferers and more public advocacy.”

The Port Adelaide Football Club has a range of charity partners and portadelaidefc.com.au promote the work of these and causes advocated for by the club’s players.