GAINESVILLE COMMUNITY LEADERS TO SERVE AS “GATORS BEHIND BARS” TO BENEFIT MDA

These “jailbirds” have all been charged with having a big heart and are heavily armed with kindness. Upon apprehension by MDA officers, bail raisers will be booked and processed and their sentence is to serve time at MDA’s maximum appreciation jail site at the Sweetwater Branch Inn, 625 E. University Avenue.

The monetary goal for this event is $80,000, which can help send several children to MDA’s annual summer camp in Live Oak, Fla., for children, ages 6 to 21, who have one of the 43 neuromuscular diseases covered by MDA.

Incentives for the jailbirds, which will be awarded during the event, include key chains, T-shirts, gift certificates from local businesses and invitations to appear on the Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon on September 4, 2006, which can be viewed locally in Gainesville on WCJB-TV 20.

In addition, there will be three local MDA members who will be present throughout the day to encourage the jailbirds to make their bail, as well as a live broadcast from the TELU site with WRUF, Rock 104.

The MDA Telethon Executive Lock-Up (TELU) is part of a yearlong fundraising campaign, which is spearheaded by the annual Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon.

Proceeds from Gainesville’s TELU will not only benefit MDA’s summer camp, but also assist MDA families in Northeast Florida. MDA also provides assistance in the purchases of wheelchairs, leg braces and communication devices for their clients and offers several support groups. Individuals can also visit MDA’s clinics in Gainesville at Shands Hospital.

MDA (www.mda.org) is a non-profit organization funded almost entirely by individual private contributors and is the number one provider of neuromuscular research. This voluntary health agency works to defeat more than 40 neuromuscular diseases through programs of worldwide research, comprehensive services, and far-reaching professional and public health education. MDA also has more than 200 offices across the country, sponsors 230 hospital-affiliated clinics and supports nearly 400 research projects around the world.

For more information about the Gainesville TELU or MDA, please contact Kelli Skodinski at the Jacksonville Regional office at (904) 642-2656 or Leslie Cowart at the Jacksonville A district office at (904) 296-6799.
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