Grant wishes to terminally ill children simply by lacing your shoes.
The Trailblaze Make-A-Wish for Wishes encourages Canadians to get active the way they want and reach distance goals to raise awareness and funds for kids in their community. Fundraising is in its second year in Atlantic Canada.
The eight-week virtual challenge runs from April 27 to June 25 and allows participants to choose how to participate and their distance. Pioneers can walk, cycle, run, hike, ride, swim or skate for distances of 50 to 200 kilometers. Participants set the pace, time and destination to help raise funds to help critically ill children in their community.
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity for participants to come,” says Joyce Nifort, Director of Development for Make-A-Wish Nova Scotia. “It’s a great opportunity also for his own mental health: to be able to go out.”
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The Demone family of Fletchers Lake, Nova Scotia knows all too well the importance of fundraisers like Trailblaze for Wishes and the impact they have on families with critically ill children. Her eight-year-old daughter, Olivia, had her wish granted in 2019 thanks to money raised by Make-A-Wish supporters. Olivia’s mother, Amy, and father, Scott, say they’ve tried to give back to the organization ever since.
“I’ve tried to give back to Make-A-Wish by doing some of their fundraising and going to their events like Trailblaze for Wishes,” says Amy Demone. “Last year I reached the 50 kilometer goal and this year I’m working on the 200 kilometer goal.”
When Olivia was five years old, she was diagnosed with ataxia telangiectasia. It is a rare genetic condition that affects the nervous and immune systems and can lead to difficulty coordinating movement.
“The news was devastating, of course,” says Scott Demone. “I was just trying to figure out what it was and of course all sorts of dates to deal with. Definitely the desire helped her a lot to change her mind a bit…that’s for sure.
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Amy hopes other Atlantic Canadians will be encouraged to sign up for Trailblaze for Wishes to help kids like Olivia.
“Signing up just gives you that motivation to do it and it also helps Make-A-Wish grant more wishes for kids,” she says. “There are so many children waiting for their wishes and we need to help raise funds and get everyone’s attention.”
Global News is a proud supporter of Make-A-Wish Trailblaze for Wishes. For more information, visit the Make-A-Wish Website.
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