As the International Association of Fire Fighters gathers this week in Seattle for its 54th annual convention, we want to recognize and thank this wonderful group of men and women fire fighters who have dedicated countless hours and generosity to the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
The IAFF kicked off its 100th anniversary earlier this year. For more than 60 of the IAFF’s 100 years, fire fighters’ endless hours of support and fundraising on MDA’s behalf have made possible much of the research progress that today benefits MDA families in so many ways — and will continue to do so.
In large thanks to the members of IAFF, especially through thousands of Fill the Boot efforts across America every year, MDA has been able to substantially fund gene research and MDA Summer Camp while also supporting innovations in care and breakthrough therapies that are improving, in some cases dramatically, the lives of children and adults who live every day with a neuromuscular disease. The continuing efforts of our fire fighter partnership will mean more progress and more hope for a time when fewer lives are affected by muscular dystrophy, ALS and related diseases.
Our IAFF partners are already heroes who protect our communities and save lives when disaster strikes; they’re heroes to us for going even further to better the lives of the MDA community. I can’t think of another organization that has spent more than six decades helping a group like ours make possible better medical outcomes and a brighter future for so many young and old alike.
As IAFF members continue to celebrate their centennial year, I hope you will take a moment to congratulate the fire fighters in your community and thank them for their boundless generosity on our behalf. We are so fortunate to have them by our side doing all they can to make countless lives better — for more than 60 years, and for many years to come.
