Marin Firefighters Raise More than $40,000 for MDA

Firefighters from Marin Professional Firefighters, IAFF Local 1775 (www.iaff1775.org) collected more than $40,000 from passing motorists at the annual Muscular Dystrophy Association “Fill the Boot” event in Marin County May 14, 2014. Off-duty firefighters asked motorists and pedestrians to drop donations into a firefighter’s boot to support MDA’s Bay Area children and families.  All of the money collected supports local families.

The final donation amount will be released after individual and online donations are counted.

Marin Professional Firefighters, IAFF Local 1775 represents more than 400 professional firefighters in Marin County and each year takes part in a county-wide effort to raise funds to support the vital health care services MDA provides to Bay Area families affected by muscle disease. Local 1775’s firefighters raised $50,000 for MDA in 2013, an all-time record for Marin.

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF, www.iaff.org) represents 300,000 professional firefighters in the US and Canada, and is one of MDA’s longest running partners in the fight against muscle disease. “Fill the Boot” fundraising drives are the primary means by which the IAFF has raised almost $300 million for MDA since 1954.

The Muscular Dystrophy Association helps children and adults who are affected by over 43 different types of neuromuscular diseases. Fill the Boot funds support MDA’s services locally and nationally, including over 200 hospital-affiliated medical clinics staffed with specialists in neuromuscular disease and special summer camps for kids. Funds raised in Marin are used to directly assist families dealing with neuromuscular diseases in the Bay Area.

Local clinics and camps benefiting from Fill the Boot funds include clinics at UCSF, California Pacific Medical Center, and Stanford. A weeklong summer camp for children with muscle disease is held each summer in the Sonoma Coastal Redwoods at Camp Westminster Woods.

MDA also funds innovative worldwide research and assists clients with the purchase durable equipment such as wheelchairs, leg braces, and other medical equipment. For more about MDA, visit www.mda.org.

For more information, Breanna Buchanan, Local 1775’s MDA Coordinator (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), or Tina Burgelman, MDA San Francisco Executive Director at 415-673-7500 or by email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..