NORTH SMITHFIELD FIREFIGHTERS SPONSOR 2ND ANNUAL RIDE FOR LIFE TO BENEFIT MDA

NORTH SMITHFIELD, RI— The North Smithfield Professional Firefighters Local 3984 will sponsor the 2nd Annual Ride for Life to raise money for the Rhode Island chapter of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. On Sunday, August 6, the Ride for Life will take off in North Smithfield on a 45-mile motorcycle ride. Riders will continue through the surrounding communities of Burrillville, Glocester, Scitutate and Smithfield, before finishing back in North Smithfield.

Registration for the Ride will begin at 9:30 a.m. on August 6 at North Smithfield Fire & Rescue Station 1, 675 St. Paul Street in North Smithfield. The Ride will leave from the Fire & Rescue station at 11 a.m. Following the Ride will be a barbecue cookout at Gator’s Pub, Victory Highway. The department has organized a charity raffle to be held at the post-ride barbecue, featuring items and services donated by local merchants. Area businesses will also support the Ride for Life by sponsoring mile-markers along the ride route.

Riders in the 2nd Annual Ride for Life will come from Rhode Island and from all across New England. Participants are asked to make a $20 donation to MDA for each bike and operator, and a $10 donation per passenger. In 2005, the 1st Annual Ride for Life raised $4,721 for MDA. Funds raised in the Ride for Life will directly affect the lives of individuals in Rhode Island living with neuromuscular disease. MDA’s programs in Rhode Island include five support groups and a hospital-affiliated clinic at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.

Riders interested in participating in the 2nd Annual Ride for Life should contact Ride for Life Chairmen Steven Provost at (401) 640-1050 or Norm Malboeuf at (401) 692-0741. In addition, donations can be made, in person or by mail, to North Smithfield Fire & Rescue Station 1, 675 St. Paul Street, North Smithfield, RI 02896.

The Muscular Dystrophy Association is a voluntary health agency working to defeat neuromuscular disease through worldwide research, comprehensive services, and far-reaching professional and public health education. For more information about MDA and its programs, contact the local office at (401) 732-1910, or visit www.mda.org.

# # #