Glory Days Grill in Centreville was the place to be last Thursday evening, April 6, when co-owners Jeff and Kathleen Newman hosted a fund-raiser for SMA (spinal muscular atrophy). It's a rare, incurable form of muscular dystrophy, and Virginia Run's Shea Megale, 10 1/2, has it.
So via its Dining for Dollars program — and as a kickoff to the upcoming, annual Walk for Shea — the restaurant donated 20 percent of its food profits, that evening, between 5-9 p.m., to the cause.
"We feel that a huge part of our success is due to the support we receive every day from the local community," said Jeff Newman. "So we feel it is an obligation to give back to the people who've helped us become successful."
And the place was jumpin' — moms, dads, kids, school sports teams and a whole slew of teachers from Shea's school, Virginia Run Elementary — all turned out for some good food, good times and a good cause.
By evening's end, they'd raised $3,200 — including a $500 donation from Ourisman Toyota of Fairfax. "It's just so great," said Shea's mom, Megan Megale. And Shea was there with her whole family, including a very special member of it, her companion dog, Mercer, a black Labrador.
This year's Walk for Shea is Sunday, April 23, at 9 a.m. in Centreville's Virginia Run community. Registration and further information is at www.walkforshea.com. Contributions may also be sent to: Families of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, P.O. Box 196, Libertyville, Ill. 60048.
<tgl> — Bonnie Hobbs