A Pitt Meadows team raised thousands of dollars in the fight against breast cancer on Sunday after taking part in the CIBC Run for the Cure.
Team ChemoSabes walked five kilometres and raised a total of $8,109 for the Canadian Cancer Society, with one member of their team, Pam Johnson, raising $6,103 single-handed.
Captain Lorrie Cummings, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in March, 2014, explained that it was important to get out and raise money despite the pandemic because people, she said, are still getting cancer. Her team’s name was a play on the name Kemosabe, meaning faithful friend, the name Tonto would often call the Lone Ranger, on the American television series that first hit the airwaves in 1941.
Cummings first decided to take part in the run the year she was diagnosed with the disease. But, on the day of the run she was too sick to participate because of her chemotherapy.
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Since then she has participated every year and was even a guest speaker at last years run in Abbotsford.
The CIBC Run for the Cure, like all other fundraisers this year, was turned into a virtual event, that was broadcast live online.
The event is a five kilometre or one kilometre walk or run that raises money for the Canadian Cancer Society.
It is the largest single-day, volunteer-led event in Canada in support of the breast cancer cause, according to CIBC.
There were performances by Jully Black, Barenaked Ladies, Jess Moskaluke and Carolyn Dawn Johnson at this years event.
A total of $8.5 million was raised across the country.
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According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, breast cancer accounts for around 25 per cent of new cases of cancer and 13 per cent of all cancer deaths in Canadian women. Also, one in eight women are expected to develop breast cancer during her lifetime and one in 33 will die of it.
Cummings has been cancer free for the last five years and said that she received such good care that she had no doubt in her mind that she would be healthy again.
“My family doctor, my oncologist, my surgeon were all very professional and I put my trust in them. The care that I received was amazing. The nurses at Ridge Meadows Hospital where I got my chemotherapy were fantastic. I went and had radiation at the hospital in Surrey, all the techs there were amazing,” said Cummings.
Her advice to others who receive the same diagnosis is to listen to the professionals, take good care of yourself, and stay positive.
cflanagan@mapleridgenews.com
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