September is a good month to fight cancer on the Sunshine Coast. Two annual events make it possible for almost every person to rally in the effort of conquering cancer.
For 30 years, folks here have honoured the memory of Terry Fox at the annual run. For those of us who remember the curly-haired kid dipping his toe in the Atlantic Ocean journeying down a lonely highway with his lopsided gait, Fox's memory strikes a personal note. We remember our tears for a stranger after he lost his personal battle. And yet the essence of Fox lives on. Year after year it's amazing to see young people, born long after Fox left this world, carry on his dream to make cancer history.
This year was no different. In spite of the liquid sunshine, folks young and seasoned came out in Gibsons and Roberts Creek to make another run at defeating cancer.
The other event that brings people out in droves is the Cops for Cancer Tour de Coast. Every year, RCMP, firefighters and ambulance attendants bike the grueling route that covers the Sunshine Coast and Lower Mainland. The riders are paired with buddies, young people for whom cancer is a fact of life. Rarely are the participants avid riders - and this year is no exception. Constables Jennifer Balfour and Corinne MacPherson are novices at riding. By the time you read this, the pair would have been in the saddle for almost a week and they likely have the aching bodies to prove it.
Building up to their ride of a lifetime, the women joined other members of the force along with local emergency responders to participate in the annual Red Serge Ladies Gala on Sept. 16. For one night members dress up in their formal red uniforms and coax a large contingent of Coast women to part with their cash. Organized by the intrepid Catherine Gadsby, who was joined by an army of volunteers, the night is a highlight on many a resident's calendar.
From our perspective, it's hard to tell who has the most fun at this giant fundraiser; the partying women or the volunteers. One thing for sure: by all measures, this year's event was a spectacular success. More than $30,000 was raised for research into pediatric cancer no small potatoes for a community that's laboured under an economic downturn for the past few years.
And amidst all the fun never does the Coast lose sight of just what the Tour de Coast means. We see the advances made in fighting cancer in the faces of past buddies who brim with good health and we are reminded of the cherubs that will never see adulthood. If you've not yet had a chance to contribute to this cause, there's still time to donate on the Cops for Cancer website. Just follow the prompts.
With all of us working together cancer will be beaten.
