2009 News Archive
Teen helps prepare firefighters for 1st MDA boot drive
Collections take place Aug. 1, 8, 15 in area shopping centers
7/31/2009
Alyssa Kumle at Station 61
The Johns Creek Fire Department, launched in October 2008, is gearing up for its first-ever Muscular Dystrophy Association "Boot Drive" fundraiser.
Firefighters got an uplifting pep talk recently when 14-year-old Alyssa Kumle visited Station 61 on behalf of MDA Atlanta to help them get ready to join colleagues across the county in raising money for the research and treatment of a disease that affects nearly 1 million Americans.
Be on the lookout for Johns Creek firefighters wielding their rubber collection boots outside Kroger stores and at other shopping plazas around the city on three consecutive weekends – Saturday, Aug. 1, 8 and 15.
The money raised here stays here to assist Johns Creek residents affected by muscular dystrophy, said MDA District Director Emily Cline.
The term "muscular dystrophy" designates a group of hereditary muscle-destroying disorders, which vary in inheritance pattern, age of onset, initial muscles attacked and rate of progression.
When Alyssa was 7 years old, a physical education teacher in her hometown near Chicago noticed that she was having trouble running and keeping up with her classmates, said her mother Kathy. Tests revealed that she suffers from a form of MD that affects the nerves in her spine, which in turn causes problems in her lower extremities.
"I can still walk, and I'm thankful for that. I just hope it doesn't get worse; I hope for the best," Alyssa told the squad. "It's been a hard journey so far."
The teenager said she particularly has enjoyed her MDA summer camp experiences.
"It's a lot of fun and everyone accepts you for who you are," she said.
There are two MDA camps in Georgia, in Rutledge and Rincon. Funds raised through the boot drives also help sponsor campers each year.
The Kumles live in the Newtown area and Alyssa will enter Centennial High School in just a few days – a prospect she admits has her a bit nervous. Chief Joseph Daniels assured her she would do just fine.
"You just be yourself," he advised. "Thank you for coming out today to help us get ready."