‘March’ campaign season nears
Published 7:41 pm Thursday, February 19, 2015
Ahead of the official kick-off breakfast next week, an organizer of the annual march to raise funds and awareness for premature babies says support is gathering.
Rachel Boyd, a community director for March of Dimes, reports a little more than 50 registrations so far for the March for Babies in Suffolk, set for Constance Wharf Marina on April 25.
During the kick-off breakfast for last year’s March of Dimes March for Babies in Suffolk, the local 2014 ambassador, Sanaa Darden, poses for a photo with mom, Titania Darden. This year’s breakfast will be held at the QVC Distribution Center on Feb. 27. All are welcome. (File Photo)
And that number can be deceiving, she said. A single registration can be an individual, a family of five, a business of 20 or a school team of dozens.
“We have hundreds of people show up for the walk,” Boyd said.
Officially launching the campaign season, the breakfast is a good place to start for prospective participants wanting to learn more, Boyd suggested.
Open to the public, with no need to RSVP, it will be held at the QVC Distribution Center, off Progress Road in Wilroy Industrial Park, at 8 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 27.
Two ambassador families will tell their stories — one, Boyd said, with a child born at 25 weeks, and the second with one child born at 30 weeks and another at 35 weeks.
“We also cover the mission and why we are walking,” Boyd said. “It energizes people to get ready for the campaign season.”
Her hopes for this year’s march? Bigger and better than 2014, which she said saw a little more than 70 registrations.
“After the kick-off breakfast, people get more excited,” Boyd said. “Right now, we are trying to get corporate teams on board. There’s different ways people can give back, like sponsorship.”
Each year, more than half a million American babies are born too early. Money raised from walks, which are expected to take place in 900 communities across the nation and involve more than 7 million walkers, supports community programs to help moms have healthy, full-term pregnancies.
The March of Dimes funds advocacy, research and education, Boyd said, and also covers dozens of different birth defects and other conditions.
“The kick-off breakfast is the perfect opportunity for people to learn and understand why we are fundraising, and the impact it has on the community,” according to Boyd.
To join the Suffolk walk or make a donation, visit www.marchofdimes.org and follow the links.
