The End of an Era

This makes me so sad. My high school youth group (B'nai Brith Youth Organization) was very involved in MDA. In 1975 we had a 24 hour dance-a-thon fundraiser. That night we danced tirelessly and raised $10,000 for MDA. It was so much money for the times (70s), that two of our teens were sent to Las Vegas to personally hand a check to Jerry Lewis.

From that point on, I spent every Labor Day weekend until I was almost 30, answering the phones at the local telethon headquarters. Many times I did the all-nighter shifts. It was a true labor of love, and I knew that Labor Day weekend meant MDA, not a barbecue or camping trip.

I believe that people just stopped watching the telethon when Jerry Lewis left the show a few years ago. Perhaps the ratings were down before that. Very sad. Whatever mixed feelings people had for Jerry Lewis, he did miracles to raise awareness and money for MDA.

I hope that people still continue to donate to such an important cause and that MDA finds alternative ways to raise money.