March of Dimes worth millions of lives saved

by Taylor Charters, editorial assistant

 

One in eight babies born in the United States each year is born prematurely. Three percent are born with birth defects.

In 1938, the March of Dimes was founded. March of Dimes started as a fight against polio after President Franklin Roosevelt was diagnosed with the disease. A year later, five chapters started up in Texas, beginning with Bosque County on June 17.  In 2001, Texas became a one-chapter state making it the second largest chapter in the country.

In 1916, a polio epidemic affected mostly children and left most of them for dead or paralyzed. Since then, March of Dimes has beaten polio with the “Salk vaccine,” which was deemed successful in 1955. They now focus on things such as premature birth, low birth weight, and birth defects.

 Nobody knows the cause of premature birth, but it causes life-long health problems. The March of Dimes organization is continuing to do genetic research to find out both causes and cures.

The March of Dimes Lubbock chapter is without a doubt taking the ball and running with it. They have started multiple programs within this district. Among those is the Texas Chapter Grants Program. The program was created to enable communities to further the March of Dimes mission, allowing them to be able to support both state and national functions within the association. This year’s goals are to improve prenatal care and prenatal education for pregnant women. They will be moving from a traditional prenatal care model to a group prenatal care model called CenteringPregnancy.

CenteringPregnancy is a prenatal care group that utilizes conference rooms as exam rooms. In the conference, room the women will be given the prenatal assessment and have the chance to share and discuss concerns with other women. These sessions are led by a group leader who is traditionally a nurse or a midwife.

In 2006, March of Dimes supported eight CenteringPregnancy projects in Texas, including Las Nubes Women’s Healthcare Primera Luz Birthing Center, Baylor College of Medicine Teen Health Clinic, Baylor College of Medicine, OB-Gyn Department- El Paso, Midwifery Section, Longview Wellness Center, Holy Family Services Birth Center, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Dept. of OB-Gyn, Martin Luther King Clinic, and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Dept. OB-Gyn- Lubbock.

Another project is the AmeriCorps VISTA Project. This project will take place in Lubbock, Dallas, Fort Worth, San Antonio, Corpus Christi, and McAllen. AmeriCorps VISTA will focus mostly on educating for low-income Hispanic and African American women on the warning signs of premature birth. This project will begin to create partnerships between the communities and churches, schools, hospitals, clinics and community-based organizations to help promote healthy pregnancies.

The March of Dimes also holds what is called Texas March Lobby Day, also called “Day at the Capitol,” which takes place during each legislative session. The purpose of “Day at the Capitol” is to educate volunteers on the policy-making process at the Capitol, as well as helping people understand major issues. This event also opens up the chance to meet legislatures and discuss issues that pertain to the March of Dimes.

This year, the event will take place March 13 at the Texas State Capitol.

In 1970, San Antonio, Texas and Columbus, Ohio made history and became the first two locations to sponsor WalkAmerica. WalkAmerica is the biggest annual fundraiser for the March of Dimes.

Currently, Houston and Dallas hold two of the biggest WalkAmerica events in the country. People across America have been walking to save lives for 36 years. 

The proceeds of America’s biggest walk support their mission of preventing birth defects, among other things, through research and educational funding. One walk will be held in Lubbock on April 24 at Maxey Park. The walk will be four miles long. WalkAmerica is one of the biggest ways to make a difference in the lives of millions of babies and millions of families.

The March of Dimes has outstretched arms to families in need of support and anyone that is willing to help. Since 1938, this organization has made great strides in genetic research.

“The key to this ongoing success is the dedicated and hardworking volunteers,” said Sandy Anderson, director of the Lubbock district.

To become involved or participate in WalkAmerica contact Anderson at (806) 797-6771 or visit the local office at 5211 Brownfield Highway, Suite 16, in Lubbock.