Lace up those walking shoes and start gearing up for this year’s annual Suffolk March of Dimes’ March for Babies, which is set for April 28 at Constant’s Wharf Park.

A kick-off breakfast for any group, organization or business interested in forming a team for this year’s walk will be held at 8 a.m. Feb. 17 at the Pruden Center for Industry & Technology, located at 4169 Pruden Blvd.

Sponsorships are still available for the event, and information will be available for those interested in helping to bring it to fruition. Long-time sponsors include WAVY-TV 10, FOX 43-TV, 97.3 the Eagle, QVC, Lipton/Unilever, Sentara Healthcare and the Nansemond River Pilot Club.

To learn more about how to be a part of this event, which is designed to raise money for the March of Dimes, contact Jamie Stump at the March of Dimes division office by Friday at 383-8824 or jstump@marchofdimes.com to register for the kickoff breakfast. For information, you can also contact Bethanne Bradshaw, Suffolk walk chairman, at betbradshaw@spsk12.net.

The March of Dimes works to fund research, education, community programs and advocacy for the prevention of birth defects, premature birth and infant mortality. Autism, Down Syndrome, sickle cell anemia, diabetes, learning disabilities and Alzheimer’s disease are a few of the more than 100 health concerns that also fall under the March of Dimes research umbrella.

America has seen a slight decline in the rate of preterm births in recent years, but there are still more than half a million babies born too soon every year, and premature birth is the top cause of newborn death.

Recently, the March of Dimes awarded national research grants totaling more than $1,346,000 to The University of Virginia and Virginia Commonwealth University.

For more information, visit www.marchofdimes.com/Virginia or www.nacersano.org.