April 29, 2013
 The 2013 Eastern Montgomery County March of Dimes March for Babies, held at Temple University Ambler on Sunday, April 28, welcomed a record number of walkers for a terrific day of supporting the organization’s mission to prevent prematurity.
According to March of Dimes March for Babies site coordinator Traci Bruno, the 16th year of the walk at the Ambler Campus proved record setting at every level.
“We had 120 teams and 1,400 walkers, and are expecting to raise over $300,000 for healthier babies,” said Bruno. “It was a great day for a walk! The energy of the crowd was amazing. Everyone was there for one reason, to walk for stronger, healthier babies.”
According to Ambler Campus March of Dimes Committee member and team coordinator Michelle Morales-Whiting, Ambler’s team had a successful year in their effort to raise funds for the March of Dimes’ important research.
“Working on the planning committee with Traci Bruno, Crisbel Baez and Sarada Jailal and all of the other members is wonderful,” Morales-Whiting said. “I can’t imagine working with a better team!”
This year also saw great support from the Ambler Campus student groups through a successful pretzel sale fundraiser, said Morales-Whiting. The pretzel sale raise well over $400 for the March of Dimes.
“The Temple Ambler team did great job and none of it would have been possible without the help of all of the students who raised money in addition to volunteering on walk day,” she said. “Their continued commitment to the March of Dimes is so appreciated!”
In addition to all of the dedicated teams and individual walkers, “we have to give a special thank you to all of our volunteers who pulled themselves out of bed early Saturday morning to be at Bright Hall Circle to help before, during and after the walk,” Morales-Whiting said.
“A huge thank you also to our wonderful crew from Facilities Management who arrived early in the morning to set up and stayed late to break everything down and to our Temple Police,” she said.
 In the next couple of months, the Ambler Campus March for Babies Committee will begin meeting again to plan for the 2014 walk, said Morales-Whiting.
“I look so forward to working with the students and staff again,” she said. “We are hoping some students and staff will decide to join the planning committee and others will join us as volunteers so that we can make the 2014 walk even bigger and better!”
March for Babies is the March of Dimes’ largest yearly fundraiser. Ambler Campus site walkers come from more than 100 companies, organizations, schools, and families in the Ambler area.
Money raised during the walk, Bruno said, often stays right in this area.
“With so many teaching hospitals in the region, such as Abington and Thomas Jefferson, March of Dimes is able to help communities come together for our mission,” she said.
For more information on how to support March of Dimes March for Babies at Temple University Ambler, contact Michelle Morales-Whiting at 267-468-8080 or michelle.whiting@temple.edu.
The March of Dimes is a national voluntary health agency whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality. Founded in 1938, the March of Dimes funds programs for research, community services, education, and advocacy to save babies. For more information on the March of Dimes, visit the organization’s website at www.modimes.org.
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