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The National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Connecticut Chapter will host the 25th Annual March Into Spring MS Fashion Show & Luncheon at the Stamford Marriott Thursday, May 1, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

"This event has great history," said Kim Maloney, development manager and coordinator of the event. "What started out as a fresh new idea developed by three Greenwich women chatting over coffee at a kitchen table 25 years ago, has now become a celebrated annual event raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for a single cause to end the devastating effects of multiple sclerosis."

In 2007 the March Into Spring MS Fashion Show, featuring professional runway models, attracted 363 guests and raised more than $120,000. This year the fashion show is expected to raise more than $130,000.

Each year the event recognizes with the Georgina B. Davids award an individual living life to the fullest in the face of adversity or someone making a difference for those battling the effects of multiple sclerosis. This year, Margie Warwick, longtime March Into Spring MS Fashion Show volunteer and former event chairperson, will receive the 2008 Georgina B. Davids award for her extraordinary efforts to help make a difference in the lives of those fighting the potentially debilitating effects of MS. Warwick, a one-time professional runway model, helped first establish the March Into Spring MS Fashion Show 25 years ago. Over the past two decades she has served in many capacities, including volunteering as a featured model and serving on the fashion show committee. Warwick has served as the event’s committee chairperson for the past three years.

More than 6,000 Connecticut residents battle the potentially debilitating effects of multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease affecting the central nervous system. There is no cure. Symptoms can include, among other things, numbness in the limbs, difficulties with vision and speech, stiffness, loss of mobility and, in some more severe cases, total paralysis. The progress, severity and specific symptoms of MS in any one person cannot be predicted. Funds raised through National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Connecticut Chapter events, such as the March Into Spring MS Fashion, ensure ongoing scientific research to find better treatments and a cure and provide for vital programs and services offered by the chapter to those in the state living with multiple sclerosis.

This year’s runway fashions are provided courtesy of Darien Sport Shop, offering quality clothing apparel for the entire family since 1945. The event includes a live auction and drawings for prizes. To reserve a table for the 25th annual March Into Spring MS Fashion Show, please contact Kim Maloney at 860-714-2300, ext. 34. For more information on multiple sclerosis, its effects and programs and services offered by the chapter to those affected by MS, please visit http://www.ctfightsms.org/ or e-mail mailto:programs@ctfightsMS.org.

3/18/08