RANGELEY — The third annual Dick Deery Run/Walk For MSA, hosted by the Deery family, is slated for Sunday, May 24. The One Mile Fun Run for kids will kick off the event from Waterfront Park at 2 p.m., followed by a two mile walk through Rangeley. Runners for the 3.5 mile race will line up at 2:15 p.m.

Registration forms are available at Morton-Furbish Real Estate, Rangeley Lakes Chamber of Commerce, Jannace's Backwoods Clothing and Oquossoc Grocery. Registration can also be done by contacting Holly Deery at hdeery@maine.rr.com or through the Maine Track Club Web site. Entrants can also register the day of the race. Preregistration for the event is encouraged.

The cost to enter the Deery Run/Walk is $15 per entrant. Sponsor sheets are also available with the entry forms. Each of the past two years the event has drawn 200 walkers and runners.

"We (the Deery family) really want to encourage people that know someone who has Parkinson's or have a family member struggling with the disease to enter. They can get stickers that say they are marching for that person. We really want to honor those people and my dad," Heidi Deery said.

Deery's father was diagnosed MSA, or Multi-System Atrophy, six years before his passing. MSA is a rare form of Parkinson's Disease that afflicts one in one million people. Through the Dick Deery Run/Walk, the Deery Family, TeamFox members, have raised over $22,000 in two years for the Michael J. Fox Foundation.

"No one was raising money directly for MSA research. We wanted to team up with the Michael J. Fox Foundation to do that. They are really the largest money driven research organization for Parkinson's Disease. There really were no cutting edge medical advancements for MSA before them," Deery said.

In addition to the walk/run events, Parkside and Main restaurant will be offering food and drink in a festive atmosphere on the deck. For the young and young at heart there will be face painting, an inflatable jump house, free snacks and a live volunteer disc jockey. A Memory Wall will be available to share "Lessons Learned" from those affected by this disease. During the day a photo memory book will created that will be sent to the Michael J. Fox Foundation.

Sponsors for this year's event include Morton & Furbish Insurance Agency, Morton & Furbish Real Estate and Rental Agency, Loon Lodge Restaurant, Saddleback Mountain Ski Area, Rangeley IGA, TSSD, Parkside & Main Restaurant, Sarge's Pub & Northeast Bank Insurance Group, The Rangeley Highlander, Jannace's Backwoods Clothing, Poland Spring, Franklin Savings Bank, Bald Mountain Camps, Rangeley Lakes Builders Supply and PJ's Power Sports / The Loony Bin Variety.

For more information about the Dick Deery Run/Walk contact Heidi Deery at 864-5200 or hdeery@rlrs.org.