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The Scarso family was forced to put its home on the market because their 3-year-old son Pietro can't climb steps. He was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, known as DMD, in July.

"Pietro can't go to his room right now in this house," said Manni Scarso, Pietro's father. "So, like, if he leaves a toy upstairs or he wants to just go to his room, he can't."

DMD is a genetic disorder of the muscle affecting one in 3,500 boys. Most children with DMD are in wheelchairs by the age of 12. And with no cure, the disease is fatal.

"I'm not accepting that it's our fate," said Dayna Scarso, Pietro's mother. "I'm really going to fight, and we're going to raise money and raise awareness. I need everybody to know who Pietro is."

The Scarso family started a nonprofit organization in September called "Pietro's Fight." There's a website, a Facebook page and a Twitter account. The goal is to raise money to help fund research in finding a cure.

"If we do nothing, we know what the end result is going to be," Manni Scarso said.

"I don't think a cure is possible tomorrow, but the proper medicines and supplements that are going to slow it down dramatically and give us 10 more years to find a cure," Dayna Scarso said.

The Bay Ridge community has been supportive. Local restaurants have donated some of their proceeds. State Senator Marty Golden introduced a resolution in Albany in support of Pietro's Fight and called on the FDA to approve a drug showing positive results.

The big fundraiser is Thursday night, where more than 600 tickets have been sold for an event at El Caribe catering hall. As part of the event, a car will be raffled off, donated by Bay Ridge Honda.

Posters can be found throughout the neighborhood. All money raised goes to research.

The Scarso family said they're planning more events this spring in Pietro's Fight.