May 26, 2006
Friday

Ketchikan, Alaska - The March of Dimes earlier this month held their annual Walk America fundraiser to support research and programs to help fight premature births that affect half a million babies every year in our country. The wind and rain didn't discourage the participants as over 100 people, many with their dogs, lined up at the A & P Market to get their shirts and check lists.

Alyssa, the adorable and endearing 8 year old local celebrity, along with her mother Laura Jackson, made an appearance to meet and encourage the walkers that volunteered for the Walk-a-Thon. This charming little girl has a mission to show people exactly what their donations to the March of Dimes can accomplish. You see, Alyssa is a March of Dimes baby. Although a mother may do everything right during her pregnancy some babies are still born prematurely with life threatening complications, as in the case of Alyssa.

Renee Schofield, this year's Walk America Organizer explained, "Through the March of Dimes, Alyssa received surfactant therapy. In lay terms, when a premature baby is born, quite often they have a sticky substance in their lungs that holds them closed and surfactant therapy is the treatment used to open the lungs to allow them to breath. Alyssa is here today because of it."

Currently attending 3rd grade at Houghtling Elementary School, Alyssa thankfully has little memory of the 3 major surgeries and countless procedures she's endured although she can recall a time when she was in Children's Hospital in Seattle only 2 years ago. "They put a tube in my nose and I couldn't eat or drink for 24 hours," Alyssa exclaimed. Just a regular kid that collects Barbie dolls, she remembers her dad spending the night in her hospital room, the many visitors and even the service dog that visits young patients to keep their spirits high. Proving that she really is just a normal 8 year old, Alyssa tugged her mom's sleeve and exclaimed, "Mom, I'm gonna' be in Sitnews!"

Schofield approached and said, "Isn't Alyssa just amazing?" Schofield herself is pretty amazing; she's been involved with the March of Dimes for over 27 years and has been the Ketchikan organizer every year since 1998. In talking with her one can quickly see how passionate she is about the March of Dimes as she explains, "In 1938, because of President Franklin Roosevelt, we've rid the world of polio," Schofield said. "March of Dimes has consistently changed the face of birth defects and we're proud of that." When asked what this year's goal is, Schofield replied, "To beat Juneau! Last year we raised $32,000 and Juneau came in at $18,000. We've begun this campaign with $8000 already in the bank from our Scrap-a-Thon held this past March. Ketchikan always comes through and so does A & P who repeatedly provides the starting and ending location plus the food for the celebratory barbeque."

The Scrap-a-Thon is an event that Schofield and Cindi Byrd established to raise funds to kick-off the Walk America event. Held this past March at the Ted Ferry Civic Center and organized by Heather Johnson, participants pay a $60 registration fee to make scrap books which are subsequently auction off raising a tremendous amount of money.

The time for talking came to an end as Walk America was about to begin. A large group from the IBEW and Peace Health (Ketchikan General Hospital) stood in the rain for a group picture. Dog owners were dressing their four legged companions in Walk America T-shirts. Moms and dads were securing plastic rain shields over their baby's strollers. Walkers grabbed their water bottles, tied their shoes and pulled on their jacket hoods as the City of Ketchikan ambulance pulled into the parking lot with lights flashing, ready to lead the anxious group on their planned route.

With the city ambulance acting as an escort and members of the Ketchikan Police Department Bike Patrol traveling the route as a safety precaution the walkers made good time to their checkpoints at Gateway City Realty, Dave's Red Anchor, Taquan Air, Tongass Federal Credit Union, First Bank and The Landing who provided the volunteers that stood ready with juice, bottled water, fruit and home baked treats to nourish the walkers. The mood was cheerful and smiles could be seen on every face despite the cold and rain.

As the walkers returned to the A & P they received their March of Dimes T-Shirts and were entered in the door prize drawings. As they departed, they knew that in one short morning they had done their part in the fight against prematurity and birth defects. Due to the weather the planned barbeque was rescheduled for Saturday, May 20th. According to a weary Schofield, the total collected from the various fundraisers will be announced at a later date.

The annual Walk America fundraiser was held on Saturday, May 6, 2006.

On the Web:

March of Dimes:
http://www.marchofdimes.com

 

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Ketchikan, Alaska