PFD Raises $6K For MDA

Since 1954, "Fill The Boot" has been a strong firefighter tradition. All over the country local union firefighters do these boot drives to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Over the years, you may have seen members of the Pittsfield Fire Department camping out in front of local Dunkin Donuts locations in bunker pants soliciting donations by way of filling a firefighter boot with cash or coins.

This past Saturday (Sept. 15), between 8 AM and 12PM, 16 Pittsfield firefighters including retired Deputy Chief Mike Polidoro, surrounded intersections near Park Square for another "Fill The Boot" drive.

In just four hours, generous traffic goers and passersby alike, donated a total of $4768.00. That, in combination with the Bucky Lewis comedy show in April at the Colonial Theatre that raised $1401.00, equaled a grand total of $6169.00, up $2800.00 from last year.

Because of your support, three new drugs for neuromuscular diseases have been recently approved, and more are expected in the next five years than in the past five decades. These treatments are life-changing for MDA families where walking, talking and even breathing can be difficult. This could not have been done without IAFF fire fighters like you. -MDA

In 2017, $24 million dollars was raised to fund research for new treatments, support for MDA centers, and to send kids to MDA summer camp.