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When many people think of the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), they probably think about the long-running telethon made famous by comedian Jerry Lewis. 

For decades, the telethon took over the Labor Day weekend and raised billions for the organization and elevated its profile to the general public.

However, the MDA is more than just a telethon. It funds research that directly accelerates treatments for MD, offers expert-backed education and support, and connects families to best-in-class care nationwide.

In honor of its 75th anniversary, the organization turned to agency Yes& for an integrated campaign to mark the milestone. 

The Legacy. Impact. Momentum. effort speaks to MDA’s past, present and future — looking back at how the organization was formed and subsequently grew. 

The MDA leads in the fight against neuromuscular diseases as well as the development of new treatments for everything from muscular dystrophy to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS — better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease). 

Most notably, the MDA also changed the way health organizations raise money by utilizing the advent of the telethon to advocate for support and inclusion of families living with neuromuscular diseases. 

“We knew we couldn’t tell the entire story of 75 years, but we didn’t need to,” says Sandra Sullivan, VP of campaign strategy at the MDA.

The organization’s goal, she notes, was to spotlight the breakthrough moments that fundamentally reshaped the neuromuscular disease landscape.

These include identifying the gene that causes Duchenne muscular dystrophy, backing the first gene therapy for a neuromuscular disease and establishing the first nationwide network of multidisciplinary care centers. 

Currently, the MDA Care Center Network has more than 150 locations nationwide.

“These were inflection points that signaled progress and possibility,” she says.

A rich history represented

From the agency perspective, Yes& worked with the MDA to make sure it paid tribute to all of its people and partners, including patients and caregivers.

A hero video shows images of the early days of the MDA — including images of President John F. Kennedy with one of the children afflicted by MD.

It transitions into vivid color with imagery underscoring how the organization has helped push science, change the laws, raise funds and shift the narrative, while thanking the communities of people that made it all possible.

In addition, there is a comprehensive timeline on the MDA website, complete with milestones and pictures.

One of the most notable developments in the organization’s history is detailed there: how Dr. Ade Milhorat, one of the few doctors in the world researching muscular dystrophies, befriended New York businessman Paul Cohen — who had a form of MD. 

Their partnership raised considerable funds to advance research seeking treatments and cures for muscular dystrophy, leading to the birth of the MDA. 

Despite the lengthy history, Sullivan stated that the MDA isn’t an organization that’s looking back for sentimentality’s sake.

“We’re building on a legacy that’s still generating results today and gaining momentum,” she says.

Sullivan singles out the campaign’s core message: history only matters if it propels action. 

“Our strategy was to show how integrated investments in research, care and community support have real-world outcomes, such as more than 25 FDA-approved treatments, expansive access to care and an informed, empowered patient community,” she says.

Getting the full story

Yes& did its research to be as comprehensive as possible. 

Carl Nielson, creative director at Yes&, says he went to some of the camps MDA hosts for kids and visited Capitol Hill as the organization met with lawmakers. 

The agency also talked with people who have been impacted by the organization and are helping tell the story of MDA through created content.

Additionally, Nielson said the agency worked with the MDA’s resident archivist, who gave them access to a trove of photography and information to work with.

“They had a video from the first camp, which was a moving experience by itself. Attending, meeting the kids and the counselors, and talking to them and seeing the legacy at the camps was amazing,” Nielson says.

The camps are a key part of the wide-ranging community that makes MDA so special, he says, with the in-person support system complementing the vitally important medical advancements for the disease.

Josh Golden, president and chief creative officer at Yes&, adds that while everybody wants a cure for MD, there’s so much that MDA does on a daily basis to ensure that everybody has a right to adaptive lifestyle resources and information.

From his perspective, that’s what the agency wants people to take away from the campaign.

Much of the content for the campaign is being created by the community itself, tagged with the hashtag #75YearsStrong.

Golden says the social media aspect is intended to reach out to cultural tastemakers that help bring the MDA’s tangible impact back into society.  

Interestingly, the MDA serves people living with over 300 neuromuscular diseases — many of which weren’t even identified to be diagnosed when the organization was founded. 

Sullivan says this campaign invites audiences to see the MDA as it is now: a “dynamic, science-driven organization” with a proven track record and a keen focus on “empowering families living with neuromuscular diseases to live empowered and independently.”