'Last Comic Standing' Josh Blue delivers laughs to kick off United Way campaign

Ocala Star-Banner - Ocala, FL, USA - Josh Blue, the 2006 winner of NBC's TV show, "Last Comic Standing," was the headliner at Thursday morning's United Way campaign kickoff to raise $2.7 million in 2007 to help Marion County's needy.

At 8 a.m., Blue had about 230 people, who attended the breakfast at the new Holiday Inn off Southwest 38th Avenue, laughing. Through his comedy, Blue, who has cerebral palsy, shows that people with disabilities can live without limits. He jokes about his life and his family.

"By the time they figured I had something wrong with me, they already knew there was nothing wrong with me," Blue quipped about his parents.

During his rapid-fire jokes, he paused to deliver a serious message.

"People so often assume because you have a disability you can't be a member of society, you can't do anything," said Blue, who also paints and competes as a member of the U.S. Paralympic Soccer Team. "We just need a little help, a little push. A lot of people helped me out. I think that's what the United Way does."

As part of the most ambitious fundraising campaign the United Way has ever undertaken in Marion County, Blue also appeared at the Ocala Civic Theatre on Thursday night.

Harvey Vandeven, who is co-chairing this year's campaign with Chris Yancey, said it will be a challenge to raise the $2.7 million in a weakening economy.

"We set that goal because it's what we need," Vandeven said. "We have seniors that need to be fed, homeless that need shelter. We have children that need homes. With these needs come responsibility. It's our responsibility to go out and raise that money."