Name: Steven "Fritz" Courington

Hometown, State: Dora, AL

Age: 38

Family:
Wife: Kim (11 years)
Daughters: Sloan (5) and Sawyer (3)

Hobbies/Interests:
Spending time with his girls; going to church; watching all the "Cops" episodes he can; but most of all, keeping up with anything and everything Auburn Football.

Date of ALS diagnosis: November 16, 2006 (my dad's birthday)

Tell us about your life before ALS:
Life was all about working 60-80 hours a week, making a life for my family. Going to Auburn Football games, fishing occasionally when I had the time.

Tell us about your life with ALS:
A blessing and a curse. God has given me the attitude to know that I am blessed no matter what the "diagnosis" is. Waking to see each day as a gift, that is what life is about. I am still a dad and a husband, just slower at my duties.

Tell us how ALS has brought new significance to any aspect of your life - family, attitude, hobbies/passions, career, etc. :
I am bolder with my faith. I don't get hung up on the negatives of what this disease can do. I stay focused on my girls and what I want them to learn from being a positive Christian and all-over a caring person. I have learned that church, family and friends are just as vital as food and water.

List your favorite quote:
"If you see a turtle on a fence post, there's a good chance someone put it there."

Do you have a “life motto” or “profound words to live by”:
God is bigger than my problems.

Has there been an “a-ha!” moment or a specific turn of events that has helped you live with ALS?
Yes, the moment I was able to completely give myself and my situation to God. He lifted the weight of grief and worry from me.

Is there anything else about you and/or ALS that you want to share with people who read your story?
I am a normal 38-year-old man with a beautiful wife and two lovely little girls. ALS is the beginning, not the end.