Wayne State College Exercise is Medicine and Rotaract club helped out at the community led Muscular Dystrophy Run on Sept. 26, to raise money and awareness.

The Muscular Dystrophy Run is not only a run, but also a walk or ride. It varies from the one-mile walk, a 5K run, and a bike ride, Dr. Barb Engebretsen said, the advisor for Exercise is Medicine.

Service above self is the club’s motto, and a reason why it is important for them to help out with community service events. The Rotaract club helped set up the day of the run, and also placed signs along the trail for motivation.

“Muscular Dystrophy is a genetic disease that affects the muscles and there’s no cure for it,” Engebretsen said. “For someone who develops muscular dystrophy, when it usually starts to manifest, you see the effects of it when they are young and then their muscles continue to deteriorate.”

It costed $10 for adults to enter, and $5 for children. There are businesses who sponsor the teams, leaving many ways to raise money. It started at the Wayne Fire Department, and ended at the 4th Jug, going along the trail.

“This event is inspired and sponsored by Zach Jorgenson who has muscular dystrophy and shows people in wheelchairs are not any different from people who aren’t,” said Engebretsen.

Engebretsen met Jorgenson at the Wayne County Fair a few years ago.

“Getting to know people like Zach is better than anything I can teach in the classroom,” Engebretsen said.

He was at the event on Saturday, the 26, and gave a speech.

“He is a person with dreams and he was doing stuff with the world, he’s not just somebody who has a disease and sits in a wheelchair,” Engebretsen said. “He’s a lot more than that and that’s kind of what he wants to promote.”

The fundraiser worked with the National Muscular Dystrophy Association, but was coordinated by a few local groups. Our Savior Lutheran Church and Karen Longe with KEL Physical Therapy were some of the primary organizers.

According to Shrunk, she was looking forward to getting the recognition not only for Muscular Dystrophy, but also the Rotaract club. She wants more people to know about the club so they can use them as a resource.

An estimated 100 people showed up for the run. There was over $18,000 raised for the National Muscular Dystrophy Association, exceeding their goal of $7,500. The number keeps rising with more donations coming in. It also gained awareness for muscular dystrophy for the town and state.