| The Truth About The Muscular Dystrophy Association
There are some traditions in life that are as American as apple pie. One of those traditions is the annual Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon. The telethon is held to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association and is typically shown for 24 hours live, though sometimes they air pre-recorded stories in the wee hours while everyone is sleeping, instead of live footage. As the name of the telethon implies, it is hosted by comedian and actor Jerry Lewis. Lewis spends the entire telethon requesting donations to find a cure for the 40+ neuromuscular diseases that fall under the term Muscular Dystrophy. Unfortunately, unlike apple pie it may fail to leave a warm, sweet taste in your mouth. Instead, for some it turns out sad, bitter, and bigoted, which is not good for anyone involved. For the past 16 years a growing number of disabled people have been picketing the MDA telethon and the inclusion of Jerry Lewis in the organization that is meant to help people with disabilities.
Seeking solutions: New buses may help city's struggling transit ...
Public transit is Lynchburg is struggling with deficits and bus-maintenance problems that often leave paying customers without a reliable way to get to work or to the doctor. But there may be several solutions, both long-term and short-term, that could strengthen a system that many of the city's working poor depend upon. Over the past several weeks, The News & Advance spent more than 20 hours riding nearly every Greater Lynchburg Transit Company bus route, and has interviewed numerous riders. The newspaper also reviewed hundreds of documents detailing maintenance work and costs after filing a Freedom of Information request. Those interviews and documents show that the GLTC faces severe maintenance issues and growing costs to provide service, including rising fuel prices.
Dave McCarthy: Local group provides keys to van for wounded Marine
NORTH KINGSTOWN -- Thanks to a special lady from Rhode Island, a quadriplegic Marine from Wisconsin will receive heartfelt cheers -- and a set of keys -- when he's wheeled on the field at halftime of the Naval Academy-University of Massachusetts football game. Former Sgt. Jason Wittling, of Mason, Wis., will be on the 50-yard line Saturday, Sept. 9, at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md., to take the keys to a specially equipped van. With a Marine escort, and a general or two at his side, Wittling will receive the $60,000-van courtesy of Wheels for Warriors, a division of the North Kingstown-based Operation Support Our Troops, which is supported by donations and in-kind services from the public. "There are a lot of good people on this earth and they seem to find me," said Mary Kay Salomone, who heads Operation Support Our Troops out of her home in North Kingstown.
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