WALK MS E-NEWS | MARCH 2012
On the first Thursday of each month you will receive a new Walk MS 2012 e-newsletter, keeping you up-to-date on all the Walk MS news that’s fit to print!
NEXT TEAM WEEK RALLIES
Join us at one of our energetic Walk MS rallies! Meet Walk MS staff who can answer questions about recruiting, fundraising, or volunteering. You can also pick-up Walk MS promotional items like posters, brochures, and Walk MS pin-up shoes, and turn in your paper donations.
Please RSVP to Erin Bickus, Teams & Community Outreach Specialist, at 312.423.1138 or erin.bickus@nmss.org.
- Wednesday, March 14 | 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Cafe Buonaro's, 300 East Fifth Avenue, Naperville map
- Thursday, March 15 | 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Starbucks, 1401 Waukegan Road, Suite C, Glenview map
TOP RECRUITING TEAMS
- Team Gillispie – (Team Captain William Gillispie): 63 members
- South Cook MS Self-Help Group – (Team Captain Yolanda Treiguts): 54 members
- Marci's Stampede – (Team Captain Marci Viland): 54 members
- Team Union – (Team Captain Sherri Smith): 36 members
- The Shanananas – (Team Captain Shannon Reeves): 33 members
- Team "DaveBob" – (Team Captain Dave Sackett): 32 members
- Chi Sigma Omega – (Team Captain Paige Maretti): 26 members
- Amy's Awesome Alliance – (Team Captain Amy Nagel): 26 members
- Colleen's Team – (Team Captain Susan Malloy): 23 members
- Nicoli and the Cannoli Crew – (Team Captain Jim Scalzo): 22 members
TOP FUNDRAISING TEAMS
- Multiple Strengths .) – (Team Captain Terry Mazurkiewicz): $8,672
- MS Mission Possible – (Team Captain Sylvia Kemp): $6,584
- Team Gillispie – (Team Captain William Gillispie): $5,650
- Team Union – (Team Captain Sherri Smith): $3,910
- Purcell's Posse – (Team Captain Andrea Purcell): $3,785
- South Cook MS Self-Help Group – (Team Captain Yolanda Treiguts): $3,207
- Myelin Milers – (Team Captain Gretchen Waitley and Jennifer Bentz): $2,925
- Marci's Stampede – (Team Captain Marci Viland): $2,925
- Team Green – (Team Captain Julie Bachler): $2,850
- Melissa's Striders – (Team Captain Melissa Weldon-Padera): $2,670
TOP FUNDRAISERS
- William Gillispie: $5,650
- Terry Mazurkiewicz: $5,345
- Sylvia Kemp: $5,329
- Mark Tiger: $4,097
- Andrea Purcell: $3,015
- Marci Viland: $2,725
- Julie Bachler: $2,650
- Jennifer Bentz: $2,175
- Tina Skryd: $,2045
- Beverly & Johnny Johnson: $1,950
WALK MS COMMUNITY EVENTS
- Crop for a Cause (March 10): A Charity Scrapbook Night & Silent Auction to benefit the National MS Society, Greater Illinois Chapter. Event includes your own scrapbook space, door prizes, light dinner, snacks, and much more. Advance paid registration required (Note: No admission charge or registraton required for the silent auction and raffle). For more info, browse flyer (via Google Docs) or website. Roselle
UPCOMING CHAPTER PROGRAMS
Your donations help support important programs and services like these:
- Meeting the Challenges (Sats., March 10 - April 14): Educational series for care partners to improve skills and build self-care abilities. Register online | Free | Orland Park
- Research: Where Are We Now? Where Are We Going? (March 12): Teleconference featuring Dr. Rana Zabad, Neurologist, University of Nebraska Medical Center MS Clinic, to discuss current and future trends in MS research. Register Online | Free | Phone
Learn more about Chapter Programs & Services>>
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MEET DEBRA RIVARD
"My name is Debra Rivard and I was diagnosed with MS in 1998. I found out about Walk MS through my local newspaper, the Joliet Herald News, and contacted the writer who encouraged me to join her team. I have walked since 2006 and last year we raised $3,500.
"This year, I will participate at the Kankakee Community Walk & 5K run on May 6 and my goal is to raise $50,000! For 2012, my team will seek personal and corporate donations and fundraise at our MS memoranza scrap-booking event (download event flyer PDF) and golf and Texas Hold em’ tournament.
"MS is a part of me and who I have become, and it’s made me strong. Walk MS brings together many people, like me, who all bring an amazing energy and vibe to the event that, for one day, makes us all family."
Browse Debra's Personal Page>>
BE A TOP TEAM
The Top Team Program is new and improved! The top team fundraisers at the end of the Walk MS 2012 year (September 30) will hold a Top Team title at Walk MS 2013 and will be awarded a team tent to celebrate their accomplishments as they join the movement together. Remember, each Walk MS site has its own personality, community feel, and size, and the number of Top Teams is based on the number of teams at each location. For more information, please visit our Top Teams page or contact Erin Bickus at erin.bickus@nmss.org.
Browse the Top Teams page>>
BUILD YOUR TEAM
During February’s Team Week, nearly 400 people registered for Walk MS! By starting a team (official size is four) you can qualify for fun perks, incentives, and exciting prizes. Walkers who take advantage of the Participant Center and update their Personal Page, on average, raise $400 more than those who don’t, so get moving! If you have questions about starting your Walk MS team, contact Erin Bickus at erin.bickus@nmss.org or 312.423.1138.
EAT AT CHILI'S
From March 1 to May 31, present this special Pepper Partner Program voucher at any Chili’s restaurant in Illinois and they will donate 10% of your total dine-in or carry-out bill to the Greater Illinois Chapter!
Download Chili's voucher (PDF)>>
GET INVOLVED FOR MS AWARENESS MONTH
March is MS Awareness Month, an opportunity to get the word out about the importance of the movement to end MS.
This year, the Greater Illinois Chapter's Dine to End MS program will allow restaurant patrons to donate to the Society throughout the month. And once again, the Chicago skyline will have an orange glow as buildings across the city show their support by writing “End MS” in lights and illuminating their skydecks orange to further MS awareness.
Want to help out? Use the downloadable files we've included below to tell your story and get friends, family, co-workers, and local politicians involved, too!
Ask your mayor to declare MS Awareness Month (doc)>>
Send a letter to your local paper (doc)>>
Hang an MS Awareness poster in your office (pdf)>>
Hang a Walk MS poster in your office (pdf)>>
Give friends and co-workers a Walk MS brochure (pdf)>>
CHICAGO LAKEFRONT WALK TIME CHANGE
Remember, registration for the Chicago Lakefront Walk has been moved this year to 9:30 a.m., with the walk now starting at 11:00 a.m. (Please note that all other walks take place at their originally scheduled time.) See you there!
Browse the Chicago Lakefront Walk page>>
VOLUNTEER OR JOIN A COMMITTEE
Join the Movement and be among the hundreds of volunteers that participate in Walk MS. We need dedicated volunteers to help before, during, and after each Walk MS event. There are a variety of ways to get involved: assist us in the office as we get ready for Walk MS; help on-site during event day; or join a planning committee for your local Walk MS site. For more information, visit our Volunteer page or contact Jocelyn Cheng, Volunteer Manager, at 312.423.1139 or jocelyn.cheng@mss.org.
Browse the Walk MS 2012 Volunteer page>>
SHARE YOUR STORY
How do you Walk MS? We want you to tell us your fundraising story. Many walkers host wrap-around events to further their fundraising efforts--and we love to highlight them on our Walk MS Happenings calendar and the Chapter's Community Events page. Some teams throw a party. Some give crazy haircuts. Some host a scrapbooking event. All these creative ways of fundraising help us move closer to our goal of a world free of MS.
What do you do? Tell us the story of your wrap-around fundraising event and we may feature it on the Walk MS website and here in the Walk MS e-newsletter. Please be sure to include photos of your event, along with the number of attendees, the amount you raised, and any helpful tips you might have for others interested in putting together their own wrap-around event. Send your stories by email to walkmsillinois@nmss.org.
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MOVE US FORWARD
Where the Money Goes From
clinical trials to FDA approvals, the latest advancements in MS
research and treatments are championed and funded by the National MS
Society. Just last year, the FDA approved the first drug designated to
treat a symptom of MS. (Other MS drugs are focused on impeding the
disease’s progression rather than on its symptoms.) Because you walk and
because you pledge, MS research moves forward.
What is MS? Every hour someone in the United States is diagnosed with MS, an unpredictable, often disabling autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. The disease affects more than 20,000 people in Illinois, 400,000 throughout the United States and 2.5 million worldwide. MS interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the body, and it can stop people from moving.
About the Greater Illinois Chapter The National MS Society, Greater Illinois Chapter mobilizes people and resources to drive research for a cure and to address the challenges of everyone affected by MS. We envision a world free of MS and move toward that end by driving change through advocacy, facilitating education, collaborating with others and by providing helpful programs and services. Please visit MSIllinois.org to learn more.
Pure Protein is a proud sponsor of Walk MS 2012
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PAVE the Way: Participate | Advocate | Volunteer | Educate
National MS Society, Greater Illinois Chapter 525 West Monroe Street, Suite 900, Chicago IL 60661 888.343.1179 | WalkMSillinois.org | WalkMSillinois@nmss.org
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