TELETHON FOR ROGERS CENTER NEXT WEEKEND

James Guthrie, left, worked with Co9ry Tan, a physical therapist, on his balance and coordination skills.

SIKESTON -- Carolyn Fennell says the Kenny Rogers United Cerebral Palsy Center is a blessing for her son, Lorenzo.

Developmentally challenged since birth, Lorenzo, 6, and his mother have made regular trips to the center from their Charleston home.

Fennell says she constantly sees improvement in Lorenzo's development, something she is quick to credit to one-on-one physical therapy and the care the center provides her son.

"The staff is wonderful. They do all they can do," Fennell said. "They are all working from the heart and take real pride in what they do.

"I hope more kids can get the blessing of being able to come here."

The center serves 134 children from throughout Southeast Missouri and even as far away as Piggott, Ark., and Cairo, Ill.

Because the services provided by the center are long-term, the cost of therapy can be high. However, the center never sends the families of their young clients a bill.

"There are just not many places people can come get therapy services on a regular basis where they can afford it," said John Chad, the center's director since 1980.

To offset the costs of providing care, the center holds an annual telethon. This year's telethon will run Saturday, March 8, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Sunday, March 9, from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.

The event will air live on local cable public access channels throughout Southeast Missouri. The broadcast is a cooperative effort between the Falcon, Enstar, Triax, SEMO and Heartland Wireless cable companies.

The telecast will not be shown on Tele-Communications Inc. cable systems. Cape Girardeau County is served by TCI.

Cape County residents wishing to contribute to the center may call toll free at 1-800-962-2843 during the telethon.

The telethon raised $172,000 last year. Chad says he hopes this year's effort will top that amount by at least $10,000.

The telethon is a vital source of funding for the center, which has an annual operating budget of $600,000.

Telethon-related activities will begin Friday with a steak dinner and dance at the Sikeston Eagles Lodge. Cost is $100 per couple.

The country music combo Exile will perform a few songs, and other musical entertainment will be provided by several regional acts. The dinner begins at 7 p.m.

A concert by Exile will be one of the telethon highlights. The group is scheduled to perform Saturday from 9 to 10 p.m.

Other events during the two-day broadcast include a baseball card show, auction, magic demonstrations and other local entertainment.

The center, founded in 1974, has been in its current facility at 300 Floyd Ave. since 1979.

Country music star Kenny Rogers has been a benefactor of the center since 1978 and has donated both money and time over the years.

The term cerebral palsy, says Chad, used to be used broadly to cover any developmental problems that doctors could not classify.

"A child does not have to have cerebral palsy to receive our services," Chad said. "We help any child who has developmental delays and needs our services."

Those delays can result from a variety of problems, including orthopedic, neurological, hearing and sight disorders, muscular dystrophy, attention deficit disorder, stroke and physical and brain damage resulting from accidents.

The center provides four different programs: occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy and early childhood special education. Treatment is strictly on an out-patient basis.

"The overall goal is to develop children to where they can be as independent as possible, to perhaps one day be able to get jobs and become productive citizens not dependent on society," Chad said.

"We feel each individual has the right to develop to their God-given maximum potential."

The type of therapy children receive is based on their individual needs. However, all work is one-on-one between the child and a trained professional.

Occupational therapy focuses on enhancing a child's fine motor skills.

"We deal with active daily living," said Molly Nirider, an occupational therapist at the center. "That includes what a child would normally do such as playing and working with their hands.

The primary goal of physical therapy is to build a child's upper and lower body strength so the child can sit, crawl, stand and walk.

Speech therapy helps children to overcome developmental delays resulting from communication problems.

The early childhood program serves the smallest number of children, eight in all. Its goal is to help children who are delayed to catch up with other children their age before they enter kindergarten.

"Hopefully, by the time they're ready for the public school system they will be at the normal level of development," Chad said.