OFD to the fill the boot for muscular dystrophy

For the 11th consecutive year, Oneida firefighters are asking for the public’s support in the fight against muscular dystrophy.

Beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday, June 3, members of the OFD will be collecting donations for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) at Oneida Plaza Drive.

Throughout the day, members of the OFD will be joined by local families affected by the disease who work with and support the department in their fundraising efforts until the event’s conclusion at 3 p.m.

The goal is to generate $5,000 in donations, a mark the OFD fell just short of in 2016.

“We’ve come close in previous years,” said Oneida Fire Marshal Timothy Cowan. “We’re looking to hit it this year.”

The International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), of which the OFD is a member, is the largest national sponsor of the MDA.

According to the IAFF web-

site, “More than 280,000 members of the IAFF in the United States and Canada are pledged to saving lives, both as fire fighters and paramedics and as the strongest campaigners for the worldwide research efforts of MDA to eradicate 40 neuromuscular diseases. The contributions of the fire fighters also go towards MDA’s summer camps for children, professional and public health education, and other programs.”

The relationship between the IAFF and the MDA formed in 1954 when a California department was moved by the story of a local, young child who had muscular dystrophy. The department developed a plan to raise money for the child by filling a boot with donations from community members to support the struggle against the disease.

Decades later, local fire departments across the country fill the boot to carry on the tradition of raising money and awareness of muscular dystrophy.

All the money raised by the OFD goes directly to the MDA, and Cowan said donations can be made throughout the year in addition to the “Fill the Boot.” Those interested in making donations can contact the Fire Marshall’s desk.

Since 1954, IAFF members have donated nearly $275 million to the MDA.

DISPATCH FILE PHOTO The Oneida City Fire Department will hold its 11th annual Fill the Boot drive to combat muscular dystrophy on Saturday, June 3, 2017.