BREMERTON — Business and civic leaders from Bremerton will be “arrested” and put “behind bars” for the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Lock-Up fundraiser on April 30.
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 Bremerton living with progressive muscle diseases.
Jailbirds have said they are having fun letting friends know they are going to be arrested. They say several of their friends even joked that they’ll give extra to MDA just to keep me locked up.
Each MDA jailbird’s “bail” is set at $2,400 which will allow him/her to be released for good behavior, and the Bremerton jail is being hosted by LaFermata Restaurant.
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 Shelli Kind, Executive Director of MDA Western Washington. “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 Bremerton.
The event also will help send Western Washington-area youngsters to a special week at MDA summer camp at Camp Seymour in Gig Harbor. 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 nonprofit 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 Bremerton are encouraged to visit the MDA Clinics at University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Hospital.
For more information about MDA’s Lock-Up campaign, please contact Heidi Murphy at 206-283-2183 or hmurphy@mdausa.org.
