This year the weather could not have been any better for our 11th annual Rivercities WalkAmerica. Wonderful weather, beautiful views from the Vidalia Riverfront and all of the hard work from our sponsors and teams made this year’s walk very successful.

The Vidalia Junior High Beta Club appeared early and helped set up for the event and also stayed late to clean up. They also coordinated the logistics of the event with the Vidalia Police Department. They always do a great job in helping us out and their presence was paramount to our success.

Thanks must be given to our top sponsor Natchez Community Hospital. Tim Trottier, CEO for Natchez Community Hospital and Marie O’Neal, department director for the Birthing Center both know the importance of March of Dimes dollars in the medical field; whether it be through educational services for expectant mothers or seed grants for rural NICUs (neo-natal intensive care units). Natchez Community Hospital has work diligently to bring the March of Dimes to the forefront in the Miss-Lou.

Thanks must also be given to our top team, Concordia Bank and Trust Company. Each year they return as our top team and I must say that I am always amazed at how much money they continue to raise.

To our sponsors and teams: The Markets, Delta Bank, Vidalia Apperal, Vidalia Junior High Beta Club, Vidalia Lower Elementary School, Louisiana Hydro Electric, Concordia Bank and Trust Company and Natchez Community Hospital. I say thanks.

The goal this year was $14,000. To date we have received $21,112.92 which is a testament to everyone’s hard work and dedication to the March of Dimes.

In 1921, Franklin D. Roosevelt was crippled with Polio and he believed that together we can beat anything, including Polio. It was his vision that started the March of Dimes in 1931 and together, just 17 years after its inception, Dr. Jonas Salk discovered a cure for Polio. In 2001, the World Health Organization reported just 480 cases of Polio World Wide and there has not been a new case in the Western Hemisphere since 1991. The March of Dimes occupies a unique place in American history. Its efforts to provide care for the victims of polio while aggressively working to develop vaccines against it, represents the first large-scale, nationwide biomedical initiative, led by a charitable organization. It also helped make the volunteer movement an integral part of the fabric of American life.

Today the March of Dimes mission focuses on premature birth, birth defects and low birth weight, but we still walk with the same belief that together we can beat anything.

For more information, please visit www.marchofdimes.com .

Thanks for making our event such a great success!

Jennifer Freeman is co-chairman of the 2007 Rivercities WalkAmerica.