Published in The BANAR November 2005
by Bill Horne
On a glorious fall day, well over one hundred adults, kids, dogs, strollers and whatever ran and walked the scenic 5k course, bringing in $11,111.25 for the Run for the Cure for breast cancer.
Organizing committee chair Lynn Sewell said, “Thanks to the great community spirit in the Hamlet, the generosity of our business people, and a hard-working committee, the local Run for the Cure keeps getting bigger and better every year.
This time we added a raffle and the sale of pink bracelets, generating another $300 for the fight against breast cancer. Some folks like the atmosphere of the big event downtown, and that’s great, but we’ve proved there are many who like the community feeling of our Run. The Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation benefits from all of this.”
It was especially inspiring to see several pink t-shirts among the crowd, signifying breast cancer survivors. Participants were treated to refreshments compliments of Loeb Blackburn Hamlet before the Run, and to a great spread of pastries and fruit afterwards, supplied by the Blackburn Arms Pub and Restaurant. Runners and walkers enjoyed water from Shoppers Drug Mart, and other significant corporate donors included Lafarge Canada Inc., Blackburn Pharmacy and Thomas Cook Travel.
The raffle produced several dozen prizes, thanks to the generosity of the following: Queens Pharmacy, J&S Service Station, Subway, Jumbo Restaurant, Lyn Novak Flowers and Gifts, and Blackburn Barber Shop. Innes Ward Councillor Rainer Bloess also contributed several raffle prizes, and a handy gift for all participants.
“It’s clear that our local Run for the Cure is really catching on,” Lynn added, “as more and more local businesses get involved, and the community spirit, and money raised, keeps growing. We’ve gone from just a couple of people walking informally around the Hamlet four years ago to this. Next year we expect Blackburn Hamlet will be listed on the CBCF website as a Run location.”
As is the tradition, Rainer Bloess again acted as the starter for the event, this time assisted by MPP Phil McNeely and MP Marc Godbout, who had to decide who was on the left and who was on the right of the starting ribbon which they held. And if you ever think our political representatives don’t work hard, they all took part in the Run, and Rainer ended up mopping the floor of the Community Centre when it was all over.
We are most grateful to the ww.blackburnhamlet.ca webmaster, Helen Rosseau, for her untiring work in keeping our event coverage up to date, and the vast number of pictures she took. We appreciate the coverage in the Banar, thanks to Evelyn Budd, and in The Star, thanks to editor Anne Moralejo.
Blackburn Hamlet residents and others can look forward to another Run for the Cure October 1, 2006 as we fight to overcome this terrible disease that affects one in eight Canadian women.