Traffic might be moving a little slower at many Columbia-area intersections later this week, but the slowdown will be for a good cause.
More than 100 firefighters from Columbia and Richland County will be using their work boots to collect money from drivers and their passengers for the annual Fill the Boot drive to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
The firefighters will be collecting donations from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
This is the best motivational thing we do year in and year out, said Capt. Eddie Baughman of the Columbia Fire Department. The morale is sky high.
This is the sixth year of the drive, which has raised a total of 603,000.
In the past five years weve been outstanding because the citizens of the Midlands have given with their hearts, Baughman said.
Last year alone the drive raised more than $118,000, earning the Columbia firefighters the distinction as the top department in the southeastern United States.
This year, firefighters have set a fund-raising goal of $125,000.
We are blessed to have one of the most outstanding and dedicated fire departments in the country, said Tom Carson, MDA district director. The support from the Midlands community, and the commitment of our local firefighters during the drive, mean a great deal to the hundreds of families we serve.
Ninety-eight cents of every dollar raised from the drive is used locally in the MDAs Columbia district to provide research, clinic visits, wheelchairs, leg braces, communication devices, support groups and a weeklong summer camp for area MDA families.
Residents can make a donation at one of the 15 intersections or mail their contributions directly to Muscular Dystrophy Association, 2700 Middleburg Drive, Suite 240, Columbia, SC 29204.
For more information, call the MDA at (803) 799-7435.
Reach Rantin at (803) 771-8306.
Distributed by the Associated Press
