Jan 27, 2009
Walk MS fundraising makes a difference
Greater Washington Chapter
Girls’ Walk MS fundraising shows everyone can make a difference
Sarah and Catherine Davis wanted to do their part to help a friend with MS and contribute to her Walk team. So the two girls raised money the only way they knew how, by asking people and knocking on doors - lots and lots of doors.
They talked to their teachers and canvassed streets near their home, asking neighbors if they would donate to Bainbridge Island’s first Walk MS in 2007. They explained that their “dear friend”, Janet Levy Pauli, has the disease and how MS can affect people.
Countless doors and hundreds of dollars in pocket change later, the girls walked the three-mile fundraiser with the satisfaction of knowing that they, too, were helping the cause.
“I was so impressed. This was not anything that I asked them to do,” says Janet, who holds the girls up as role models to inspire the other members of her Rock Walkers team. “I’m so touched that this was something that they wanted to do for me.”
This past spring, the sisters were at it again, raising $700, and they hope to beat that amount in 2009.They don’t just ask for money. They also recruit classmates for the Walk team and try to educate others about the disease.
“Most people don’t know what MS is,” says Sarah, 12. “We explain what it is and what it does and how some people don’t have it as bad and some people end up in a wheelchair.”
“Everybody we talked to was really kind,” she adds. “I felt like they wanted to hear what we had to say. I felt like we accomplished something.”
Catherine, 10, also enjoyed the experience, once she got over her initial shyness. “Going door to door is kind of scary, but exciting too.”
Jennifer Davis says she couldn’t be more proud of her daughters. “They taught me something,” she says. “So many times you want to do something to help and stop yourself because you feel like you can’t do enough. They just went out and did it.”