WalkAmerica
WalkAmerica was the largest single fund-raising event of the March of Dimes. WalkAmerica is as essential to the history and identity of the foundation as the original March of Dimes fund-raiser held each January during the polio era. WalkAmerica – or simply “Walk”, as it is known to March of Dimes staff – takes place annually, generally in April, in cities throughout the U.S. From modest walkathon events organized by local chapters in 1970 WalkAmerica has evolved into spirited walking event with millions of volunteer participants, endorsement and support by nationally known corporate sponsors, and a revenue that sustains critical March of Dimes programs as its Folic Acid and Prematurity campaigns.
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| WalkAmerica Event in Chicago, 2005. |
The very first March of Dimes walkathon occurred in San Antonio, Texas, on October 7, 1970, followed by similar walks in Ohio at Columbus on November 14 and Mentor (Lake County) on November 15. The weather conditions at the Columbus walkathon were depicted as “absolutely miserable [with] rain, cold and bone chilling winds, which did not abate at all during the walking period.” Yet the 500 walkers at Columbus, pledged $64,687 to the March of Dimes, engendering a fund-raising methodology that quickly became national in scope and that perpetuated the enthusiasm of volunteers on which the foundation built its reputation.
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| WalkAmerica: Columbus, Ohio, November 14, 1970. |
By 1974, 95% of March of Dimes chapters participated in the event, accounting for more than $14 million in revenue, some billing it as the “March of Dimes Super-Walk”.
Successful walkers received the Order of the Battered Boot certificate for their participation, and the foundation created a film, The Big Walk (1973) to document and promote the event.
In 1979 the March of Dimes incorporated TeamWalk, inviting participation by teams of employees from other corporations, into the WalkAmerica strategy. On April 26, 1981 the foundation held the first walk occurring nationally on the same day billed as WalkAmerica and has since kept the tradition of holding the event on the last weekend in April. The TeamWalk concept developed into further competitive challenges to raise funds, and national sponsors like the Campbell Soup Company (1988) enlisted their support.
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| 7-11 Team participating in WalkAmerica, 1982. |
In 1991 Lee Iacocca, Chairman of the Chrysler Corporation was the Honorary National WalkAmerica chairman.
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| Lee Iacocca, National WalkAmerica Chairman, 1991. |
With increasing sophistication in promotion and marketing, each campaign was given a theme (slogan) that merged fund-raising and mission objectives. Experience WalkAmerica was the campaign in 1991, followed by Walk for Healthier Babies (1993), Walk for Someone You Love (1995), and Be A Hero for the Tiniest Babies (2002) among others. WalkAmerica advertising and promotional literature thus became standardized around mission-related themes of perinatal health.
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| WalkAmerica campaign poster, 1995. |
In 1989 Anthony (Tony) Choppa became National Director of WalkAmerica and further consolidated the foundation’s fund-raising objectives on a national basis through central planning and chapter support. National corporate sponsors have included Lipton, Kellogg, K-Mart, Cigna, and Canon.
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| KMart WalkAmerica Corporate Team, 1995. |
The event has spawned wrap-around events to enhance fund-raising opportunities and spin-off events such as WonderWalk and WalkMania. The March of Dimes WalkAmerica remains the premier fund-raiser that has saved millions of babies from death and disability.
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| WonderWalk campaign poster. |
WalkAmerica received a major brand update in 2008. It was renamed "March for Babies" and continues to go by that name as of 2025.
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| March for Babies: Dallas, TX, 2011. |
March 2003 / David Rose / March of Dimes Archives
Updated 2025 / Chris Lima
