MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY ASSOCIATION HOLDS KEY TO DONATIONS VOLUNTEERS JOKINGLY LOCKED UP UNTIL AGENCY GETS 'BAIL' FEE.Byline: Sean Ceglinsky Staff Writer VALENCIA - Several Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, business leaders were serving hard time Thursday while working for a good cause. More than 100 community residents, from executives to civic leaders, were voluntarily thrown into a mock jail at Rio Lobo restaurant on Town Center Drive to raise $30,000 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) is an organization founded in 1950 which combats muscular dystrophy and diseases of the nervous system and muscular system in general by funding research, providing medical and community services, and educating health professionals . ``The great thing about this is you're meeting other people in the community who are actively involved and really care about what is going on out here,'' said Pablo Santibanez, manager of World Savings Bank savings bank, financial institution that, until recently, performed only the following functions: receiving savings deposits of individuals, investing them, and providing a modest return to its depositors in the form of interest. . Each participant raised ``bail'' - a $2,500 donation - by calling friends and relatives for contributions to the association's programs. ``Sometimes, I'll actually call and tell people, hey, I'm in jail, and they're shocked,'' said Santibanez, wearing his jail stripes. ``Then I'll explain to them that I'm not really, and I'm at a fund-raiser. It's funny at times. All in all, everyone has been positive and helpful. The whole purpose of this is to get out in the community and help people who have muscular dystrophy muscular dystrophy (dĭs`trōfē), any of several inherited diseases characterized by progressive wasting of the skeletal muscles. There are five main forms of the disease. .'' The association is a nonprofit health agency working to provide services and to defeat neuromuscular diseases Neuromuscular disease is a very broad term that encompasses many diseases and ailments that either directly (via intrinsic muscle pathology) or indirectly (animal muscle in general. Neuromuscular diseases are those that affect the muscles and/or their nervous control. through research and through professional and public education. It has more than 230 clinics nationwide, including one at the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA comprises the College of Letters and Science (the primary undergraduate college), seven professional schools, and five professional Health Science schools. Since 2001, UCLA has enrolled over 33,000 total students, and that number is steadily rising. , and a summer camp at Loyola Marymount University Marymount University is a coeducational, four-year Catholic university whose main campus is located in Arlington, Virginia. History Marymount was founded in 1950 by the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM) as Marymount College, a two-year women's school. for kids with muscular-wasting diseases. The association was founded in 1950 by a group of adults with muscular dystrophy, parents of children with muscular dystrophy and a physician- scientist studying the disorder. Since then, it has been energized by its top volunteer and national chairman, entertainer Jerry Lewis, and his Labor Day Labor Day, holiday celebrated in the United States and Canada on the first Monday in September to honor the laborer. It was inaugurated by the Knights of Labor in 1882 and made a national holiday by the U.S. Congress in 1894. fund-raising telethons, although the mock jailing is becoming equally successful. ``We basically contacted all of the local business leaders, owners and human-resource managers and told them of our goals,'' said Victoria Montoya, the association's spokeswoman. ``This is a big fund-raiser for us. It's our biggest lock-up of the year and we always do it out here in Santa Clarita.'' The community rallied around the event, with cell phones from Nextel for participants to call for ``bail,'' shuttle service provided by Magic Ford and Keyes Valencia in makeshift paddy wagons, and ``jail'' food served by Rio Lobo. ``We looked at this event as a great way to help out and give back to the community,'' said Laina McFerren, owner of Rio Lobo. ``Plus, it's a worthy cause, and they're raising a lot of money. We believe in supporting the community that supports us, and working with MDA (1) (Monochrome Display Adapter) The first IBM PC monochrome video display standard for text. Due to its lack of graphics, MDA cards were often replaced with Hercules cards, which provided both text and graphics. See PC display modes and Hercules Graphics. is a great opportunity to do that. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) Joel Abergel of LaVotre Pharmacy, playing jailer Thursday, jokingly tells Yvonne Alcala to behave while she awaits ``bail'' in the form of donations to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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