Red Shirts boost Team Arkadelphia in MS Walk

Rho Sigma's 2008 pledge class, supported by the actives, helped Red Shirt alumnus Russell "Stick" Strickland and Team Arkadelphia win a trio of top honors in the 2008 Little Rock MS Walk. Team Arkadelphia was the top fund-raiser for the fifth year in a row, raising $26,815 to fight MS. Strickland, a 1981 initiate, was top individual Arkansas fund-raiser for the sixth year in a row. Team Arkadelphia also captured the Spirit Award for the first time, a feat Strickland attributed to the Red Shirts. Russ Strickland was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1990. He worked for British Petroleum (BP) in Alaska for eighteen years before retiring and moving his family to Arkadelphia, where he lives with his wife and two daughters. Though wheelchair bound, Strickland is active in the Arkansas MS chapter. He has been the top fund-raiser for the past ten years for the MS Society in Alaska and now in Arkansas. Strickland's Team Achievements: 2008 $26,815 Arkansas 2007 $24,586 Arkansas 2006 $22,965 Arkansas 2005 $17,005 Arkansas 2004 $17,235 Arkansas 2003 $12,628 Arkansas 2002 $17,830 Alaska 2001 $21,055 Alaska 2000 $12,185 Alaska 1999 $ 6,655 Alaska The MS Walk is the signature event of the International Multiple Schlerosis Society. Each year, more than 250,000 walkers participate in more than 700 cities across the United States. Rho Sigma was unable to participate in the 2009 MS Walk because of scheduling conflicts. The Red Shirts hope to be back in 2010.

RHO SIGMA MEMBERS AND PLEDGES POSE WITH TOP MS WALK FUND-RAISER AND RED SHIRT ALUMNUS RUSS STRICKLAND AFTER WINNING THE TOP TEAM, TOP INDIVIDUAL FUND-RAISER, AND TEAM SPIRIT AWARDS IN THE 2008 MS WALK. PROCEEDS FROM THE EVENT ARE USED TO FUND MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS RESEARCH AND TREATMENT EFFORTS.