Walk brings Multiple Sclerosis to fore

By LOUISA CLEAVE

Gordon Baker yesterday returned to the Auckland waterfront more than a decade after he ran the 8.4km Round the Bays in 62 minutes.

He walked a 1km stretch of Tamaki Drive in about 20 minutes and said it felt good to be back.

Mr Baker, 53, joined a 33-strong group of multiple sclerosis sufferers, family members and supporters on the walk to mark the start of the annual MS awareness week.

Many in the group were women, and nearly all travelled the distance from the Tamaki Yacht Club to Mission Bay in wheelchairs. A wheelchair is eventually needed by about one-third of people with MS, says the Auckland MS Society.

Mr Baker, of Mangere, who was diagnosed seven years ago, swims once a week for therapy.

Multiple Sclerosis Society of Auckland

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