Local families affected by a rare neurological disorder can now call on a new Manx charity for support.

The Manx MSA Trust been founded by Chris Blake, a 40 year old father of two who was diagnosed with MSA in March last year, and the official launch of the charity has taken place with a poker tournament held at the Palace Casino and supported by Pokerstars and the casino itself.

The event raised ?6,000 and got the charity off to a flying start. Sixty players and 40 guests joined in to battle for prizes that included a weekend in Dublin. After more than five hours of play, the tournament was won by Steve Rough with Eoin Kennedy in second place and Chris Stragalis third.

Chris Blake said: ‘The tournament was a great success and would not have been possible without the fantastic support from all the sponsors and everyone who donated a prize. I’d like to say a massive thank you to Pokerstars, the Palace Casino, prize donors, tournament players, guests, family and friends for making it all happen.’

Chris decided to create a local hub of MSA-aware individuals after his diagnosis, to provide more information and help ensure future cases are detected earlier. It can take several years for a diagnosis to be made as the disorder is so rare it has never been seen by many health professionals.

He said: ‘Our aims are to raise awareness of MSA and attract funds for research into the disease. We are already off to a brilliant start with lots of fund raising activities, including many kind donations from family and friends, our successful poker tournament, and a wonderful ?10,000 boost donated by the Scheinberg family.’

More information can be found at: www.manxmsa.com. 

Photo - Left to right, second placed Eoin Kennedy, head of corporate giving at Pokerstars Sue Hammett, winner Steve Rough, Manx MSA founder Chris Blake and third placed Chris Stragalis.