The mother of a girl with a rare disorder that affects the central nervous system has organized a fundraising event Saturday at a Rocky Mount church to support other families affected by the disease.

The first Walk & Fun Day in honor of Nealie Ann Turner is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. at Shenandoah Baptist Church at 3894 Shenandoah Drive.

The proceeds from the event will benefit the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation.

Nealie’s mother, Amanda Turner, decided to organize the walk in Rocky Mount to benefit the foundation, which is seeking to find a cure for the disease and to educate families affected by it.

Donations are tax deductible.

Amanda Turner said she hopes the foundation can help people avoid the uncertainty her family has experienced with her daughter’s disease.

“We hadn’t heard of it,” she said. “We had no background. There is not any illness in either of our families, so (the diagnosis) sort of took us by surprise. I want other families to know where to turn.”

Turner said they knew something was wrong with their daughter, who is now 8 years old, when she was having seizures at 8 months old. But it wasn’t until Nealie Turner was 3 years old that doctors were able to diagnose the girl with Leigh’s disease, which is among the mitochondrial disorders.

Leigh’s disease is a rare genetic neurometabolic disorder characterized by the degeneration of the central nervous system.

Registration for the walk starts at 8 a.m.

One-mile and three-mile tracks have been marked off around the church area.

There will be a play area for children, a cake walk and raffle drawings. Lunch will be available for purchase at 11 a.m.

Shenandoah Baptist Church pastor Richard Collins, the uncle of Nealie, said the event will be similar the Pregnancy Care Center’s annual walk.

People can accept pledges for each mile they walk, or they can show up at the event and donate and participate in the walk, he said.

Amanda Turner, a Goldsboro resident who grew up in Rocky Mount, said she decided to organize the walk after seeing similar events held across the country.

“(The foundation) gives out different ideas each year for fundraisers,” she said. “For the past two years, it has suggested walks for various distances. (The foundation) will support you as far as getting an online website so people can make online donations and help you advertise and get the word out.”

The website for this event is www.umdf.org/nealiewalk. For more information, call 382-1639 or 919-440-1068.