By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com
* Photo gallery
* April 27: Firefighters match face, name with a cause
* April 23: Firefighters to “Fill the Boot”
ROCKINGHAM — There is something special going on at Walmart in Rockingham today, but be reassured there is no emergency.
Firefighters with the Rockingham Fire Department are on the first of a three-day effort to “Fill the Boot” for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Department personnel will be on site from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m today, Saturday and Sunday to accept donations from the community. The goal is to raise funds for MDA.
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
The Muscular Dystrophy Association is the world’s leading nonprofit health agency dedicated to saving and improving the lives of anyone with muscle disease, including muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other neuromuscular diseases. It does so by funding worldwide research to find treatments and cures; by providing comprehensive health care services and support to MDA families nationwide; and by rallying communities to fight back through advocacy, fundraising and local engagement.
Locally, the MDA helps people like Milee Huffman attend camps geared to meet the needs of those with the disease that causes muscles to weaken.
Firefighters Cory McLaughlin and Warren McBride, along with engineers Ed Hairfield and Joe Brown, joined Rockingham Fire Chief Harold Isler and Assistant Chief David Mullis patrolling Walmart’s two main entrances. Those who donated received a sticker; those of a particular younger age received a sticker regardless of donation.
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
Isler said the city’s fire department was fully operational during the community outreach effort. The equipment and firefighting personnel stationed at Walmart could, as usual, be deployed at a moment’s notice.
“We’ve got the city covered,” Isler said.
Isler had a chance to prove that only a short time later. At about noon, city firefighters were the first to respond to a patient at McDonald’s inside Walmart experiencing a medical issue.
Firefighter support for MDA began in 1954 when the organization committed by proclamation to support MDA until a cure is found, and the organization’s unwavering commitment to MDA has remained strong to this day. Fire fighters raised $100,000 for MDA in 1955, and $1 million in 1970, and fire fighters continue to raise the bar in their fundraising efforts. In 2013, more than 100,000 fire fighters participated in Fill the Boot events across the country and raised $26.2 million. To date the Fire fighters have raised $558 million for MDA.
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
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