SIKESTON — COVID-19, commonly known as coronavirus, is starting to have an impact locally.
On Wednesday evening, the Kenny Rogers Children’s Center announced a modification to their annual telethon, scheduled for March 21 and 22. Instead of holding the 40th Annual Telethon live at the Sikeston Field House, most live events will be cancelled, replaced by a virtual telethon.
“The Center’s top priority is the health and safety of the children we serve,” said Kenny Rogers Children’s Center Director Michelle Fayette in a video statement Thursday morning. “With the unpredictability of the current health climate, we feel it is in the best interest of the children we serve to cancel all live events scheduled at the Sikeston High School Field House on March 21 and 22.”
Fayette said they will be live streaming entertainment, child interviews and VIP panels on the scheduled dates from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The live stream can be found on the KRCC website, Facebook page and YouTube channel.
“Though there won’t be a live audience at the Center, we are still excited to share all the success stories from this year. It is so important we continue our fundraising efforts to ensure that this telethon is a success and we can’t do it without your support,” Fayette said in the statement. “We are relying on all of our fundraising teams more than ever to help us reach our telethon goal of $350,000.”
Anyone with questions is asked to call the Center for more information.