Members of the City of Charlottesville Fire Department and Charlottesville Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 2363, along with the Muscular Dystrophy Association, will host a special event to celebrate their 60-year partnership and kick off the fire fighters’ annual Fill the Boot fundraising campaign to benefit children and adults affected by muscle disease throughout the Charlottesville area.
Taking place at Charlottesville Fire Station 10 at 2420 Fontaine Avenue on Wednesday, August 20, 2014 at 10:00am, the event will include notable guests from the City of Charlottesville, Charlottesville Fire Department, Charlottesville Professional Fire Fighters Association and local families served by MDA.
“Throughout 2014, MDA and fire fighters are celebrating 60 years of proud partnership, joined together in the fight against life-threatening muscle disease,” said Executive Director Andrea Shaver. “Fire fighters do more for MDA and the families we serve than any other group. In the Charlottesville and Albemarle area, they spend countless hours every year participating in Fill the Boot drives and at MDA Summer Camp. We’re grateful for the support of these inspiring, selfless individuals who have made a profound impact on our families’ health, wellbeing and quality of life.”
Several hundred fire fighters from the City of Charlottesville and counties of Albemarle and Louisa will fan out across the area with boots in hand for this year’s drive through Labor Day, Monday, September 1, 2014.
Funds raised through the 2014 Fill the Boot events will help support MDA’s programs of worldwide research, specialized health care services, and day-to-day support – which includes sending children affected by muscular dystrophy and related diseases to a weeklong, barrier-free MDA summer camp at Airfield 4-H Conference & Educational Center in Wakefield, Virginia.
As the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s largest national sponsor, the International Association of Fire Fighters fuels MDA’s mission to find treatments and cures for life-threatening muscle diseases.
The IAFF is a major contributing sponsor of the MDA Show of Strength Telethon, and IAFF contributions from charity baseball games and other local events help support MDA’s efforts to raise awareness and provide professional and public education about neuromuscular diseases.
IAFF 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. The IAFF 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 IAFF has raised $530 million for MDA.
About the IAFF
The International Association of Fire Fighters represents more than 300,000 professional fire fighters and paramedics who protect 85 percent of the nation’s population. More than 3,200 affiliates and their members protect communities in every state in the United States and in Canada.
About MDA
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. Visit mda.org and follow us at facebook.com/MDAnational and @MDAnews. Learn more about MDA’s mission by watching this video.
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