BY SIA LING XIN

MOVED by the plight of muscular- dystrophy sufferers who end up wheelchair-bound after their muscles waste away, four student dancers embarked on a project to raise funds for them, and raise awareness of the genetic disease.

The ability to control the body is very important to dancers, said student Elena Ho. 'I felt so sorry for those with muscular dystrophy as I can't imagine myself in their shoes.'

So the four girls, all Secondary 3 students from Nanyang Girls' High School, decided to organise a funfair, with proceeds going to the Muscular Dystrophy Association (Singapore).

They applied for $1,600 in seed money from the Citi- Bank-YMCA Youth for Causes initiative, which funds youths in realising an entrepreneurial idea.

In the past six years, 480 teams have raised over $2.62 million for some 150 non-profit groups through the initiative.

Elena and her friends, Lauren Fu, Tan Jia Yi and Halynne Shi, began planning their event in May, and made it a reality yesterday at Scape Youth Park.

They roped in more than 20 student volunteers from their school and Hwa Chong Institution to run the event, which raised more than $17,000.

Volunteer Janessa Sit, 15, whose grandfather died of muscular dystrophy and whose family did not explain the disease to her, said: 'I want to help people understand what I did not.'

Mr Lim Shin Ming, 22, a muscular-dystrophy patient, said that he was often 'stared at like an exhibit'. He hopes that the public will become more accepting of others like himself through such projects.

The girls' efforts were impressive, said Ms Sherena Loh, the association's senior manager.

Elena said: 'Knowing that we have made a difference makes everything worth it.'

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