Published in The BANAR February 2014
by Lynn Sewell.
Many of you in Blackburn are very familiar with the red and white Cancer Chase signs that start popping up in Blackburn in early September but perhaps you don’t know how this all started. Here is the history and evolution of this community event.
In October of 1999, a close friend of mine, who was one year out of treatment, along with a few of us took part in the Run for the Cure for Breast Cancer downtown. Though the “in memory signs” are important for some, for my friend they weren’t something she wanted at this stage of her journey. From 2000-2002, this same group did our Walk” around Blackburn, with coffee in hand and sent our donations to the event downtown. We often said “wouldn’t it be great to have a small Run here in the Hamlet?” but that is where it would end until Labour Day 2003 when my friend called me to tell me her cancer had returned. With this news I decided I just had to get the Run going in Blackburn!
Within days, a small group of friends gathered and we talked about the possibility of a Blackburn event. Everyone was keen. After a meeting with the officials of the Ottawa Run, we officially got the “okay” for the event. The Run started to take shape and three weeks later (October 2003), the first Blackburn Run for the Cure raised $6,700 with one hundred people walking or running. We exceeded our expectations of perhaps 20 people and raising $1,200.
Each year after, the event grew in participants and dollars raised. By the end of the 8th year we had raised approximately $143,000. In 2006 the company, Freedom 55, joined us with their team and raised our totals significantly.
Those who have organized the event have been dedicated to it for many years. Many started in 2003 and have never missed a year while each year new participants would join. Each person played a special role in the success of the event, be it on the day of, or days or months leading up to the walk/run.
It has become a well-received community event with businesses contributing refreshments and gifts of service or product for the raffle. In 2011, following my own diagnosis and treatment for breast cancer, I realized how lucky we are to be in Ottawa with such amazing care and resources. It was a unanimous decision by the group to change the event to the Blackburn Cancer Chase, with all dollars raised going to cancer research here in Ottawa at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. The Ottawa Hospital Foundation has been wonderful to work with and very supportive of the Chase.
In 2012, the 1st version of the Blackburn Cancer Chase raised almost $22,000 for various kinds of cancer research, and the 2013 Chase raised the same amount.
So, in a nutshell, this summarizes the 10 fall cancer events in Blackburn with approximately $185,000 raised and with hopefully many more to follow.
The Sewell family has made a big decision and we plan to leave Blackburn for Belleville in the spring of 2014 to be closer to family there and in Toronto. Leaving Blackburn after 34 and a half years will not be easy. We have deep roots here. We have also made incredible friendships in this wonderful community and plan to return often to visit—as well as take part in the next Blackburn Hamlet Cancer Chase.