Kosciusko County business and community leaders will be “arrested” and put “behind bars” for the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Lock-Up fundraiser on Tuesday, March 4, at Noa Noa in Warsaw.
Accused of having big hearts and being heavily armed with kindness, the “jailbirds” volunteered to be part of MDA’s Lock-Up in order to raise “bail” by encouraging friends, family, co-workers and business contacts to make contributions to MDA that will directly benefit families in Kosciusko County living with progressive muscle diseases.
Jail birds participating are reaching out to their co-workers, friends and family for support. Jail bird, Kelly Malcolm of Malcolm Associates, even promised to match every donation she received on one particular day. Nancy Fanning and Team DePuy Synthes – Fight for a Cure have already raised their full bail thanks to the help of many fellow employees and a generous company donation from Johnson & Johnson!
Each MDA jailbird’s “bail” is set at $3,000, which will allow him/her to be released for good behavior. The Kosciusko County Sherriff’s Department, Warsaw Police Department, R&B Car Company and Club Car Limo will be volunteering their time to help us escort our jail birds to Noa Noa and then back to work.
MDA also assists jailbirds in creating personalized Lock-Up donation websites to help raise their bail ahead of time online. The links for these websites can be emailed to friends, family and co-workers who could make secure online donations.
“It’s amazing how our community jailbirds have rallied around MDA and are doing a great job as they continue to raise bail donations,” explained Alison Eckert, fundraising coordinator and friendly MDA parole officer. “The actual day of the Lock-Up will be a fun celebration of the work each person did to help families who live right here in our community.”
Lock-ups are one of MDA’s signature fundraising programs, benefiting local individuals living with muscular dystrophy, ALS and related progressive muscle diseases in the Warsaw area.
The event also will help send Kosciusko County youngsters to a special week at MDA summer camp at Camp Potawotami. Youngsters with muscle diseases, as well as the many volunteers who help create magic at MDA summer camp each year, enjoy a wide variety of activities designed specifically for youngsters with limited mobility. Some activities include horseback riding, swimming, football, and arts and crafts.
MDA is the non-profit health agency dedicated to curing muscular dystrophy, ALS and related diseases by funding worldwide research. The Association also provides unparalleled health care services; advocates for the families it serves; and invests significant resources educating the medical and scientific communities, as well as the general public, about neuromuscular diseases affecting more than 1 million Americans.
MDA maintains a nationwide network of some 200 hospital-affiliated clinics —38 of which are designed as MDA/ALS centers —that provide unparalleled medical and health care services to adults and children with neuromuscular diseases. Families in Kosciusko County are encouraged to visit the MDA Clinic at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne or Elkhart Clinic in Elkhart.
For more information about MDA’s Lock-Up campaign, please contact Alison Eckert at aeckert@mdausa.org.