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Jerry Lewis has been the face of the MDA Labor Day Telethon since 1966. The very first broadcast was done by only one station in New York City. Yet with the help of the comedian they were able to raise $1 million dollars! Today the Telethon is broadcast by nearly 190 MDA “Love Networks” and employs the help of 250,000 volunteers across the country.
In 1998, the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon made history as the first telethon seen around the world via Internet simulcast, hosted by RealNetworks on the MDA’s Web site.
Jerry’s goal of raising “one dollar more” than the previous year’s has been more than met almost every year, thanks to the generosity of the American public. Last year’s total was $63.8 million. The Telethon was watched by about 40 million viewers in North America alone and countless more all around the world last year.
The Telethon raises much needed funds for the more than 40 forms of muscular dystrophy and related diseases. Children and adults benefit directly from the fundraised dollars by receiving services such as, medical and therapeutic care at 225 university-based clinics and 38 MDA-based clinics, help with paying for repair of wheelchairs, leg braces and assistive communication devices. Support groups, summer camp for the kids, and ongoing public education are also among the care that directly affects the families.
This year, MDA has allocated some $38 million for research, funding some 333 projects worldwide. MDA-funded scientists are making progress in understanding disease mechanisms, as well as testing promising treatments.
Since last year’s Telethon, MDA-funded researchers have released recommendations for anesthesia usage in patients with DMD, discovered that nervous-system support cells known as astrocytes may play a larger role in ALS than previously thought, developed guidelines for disease management in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in conjunction with other SMA groups and, identified the gene for a rare form of SMA that stems from an error in an X-chromosome gene.
For information on how to help MDA as a volunteer or sponsor, call (800) 572-1717. To learn about MDA online, visit MDA’s Web site at www.mda.org. You also can visit MDA’s site devoted exclusively to ALS at www.als-mda.org, or its Spanish-language site at www.mdaenespanol.org.
The local MDA office is located in Glastonbury CT for more information visit hartford@mdausa.org
The local MDA clinic is loctated at the Connecticut Childrens Medical Center in Hartford CT CCMCkids.org
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