This year’s edition of the Walk to Make Cystic Fibrosis History exceeded the expectations of organizers.
The two-kiloometre walk was held on Saturday, with the Kin Play Park in the Hillside subdivision serving as the start-finish point. The Estevan Kinsmen and Kinettes Clubs organized the walk.
Kasey McIntyre with the Estevan Kinettes Club said the event raised $14,057.35 for Cystic Fibrosis Canada. The total includes pledges and donations that were made at the park.
“The walk was very successful this year, and I mean successful in terms of participant turnout, teams and obviously donations that were brought in today that were unbelievably way more than I was hoping for,” McIntyre said after the walk.
McIntyre was expecting to have a little more than 50 participants. As of the night before, there were 40 people signed up. She estimates there were 60 to 80 registrants, plus volunteers and some spectators who turned out to watch the walk.
A pancake breakfast was held before the walk, and a barbecue lunch was served. People donated for both causes.
A number of speakers addressed the crowd during the opening ceremonies. Souris-Moose Mountain MP Robert Kitchen brought McIntyre’s son Liam to join him for his speech.
Kitchen, who called Liam his buddy, noted he got to know Liam when Liam’s mother worked for him.
“This is one of the greatest reasons why I like being here for events like this, because of people like Liam,” said Kitchen.
He noted that MPs in the House of Commons wore yellow roses last week in honour of those with CF. The yellow rose is a symbol associated with the disease.
City Councillor Dennis Moore also spoke, and said he looks forward to the day when CF is history.
Kelly Thompson of Carnduff, whose son Braden has CF, discussed her family’s experiences with the genetic disease. She said it is very complex, but for those who have to live with it, it’s part of a daily struggle.
“Right now, there are over 1,500 types of gene mutations,” she said. “That’s a lot.”
Braden was diagnosed with CF on May 16, 2013, when he was just five years old. He was always very small for his age, and was in and out of the hospital.
They were initially told he had chronic bronchitis and asthma, and they would have to learn to cope with it, but he would grow out of it. The diagnosis didn’t satisfy Thompson’s family, so they went to Calgary for an assessment.
Braden eventually had surgery, and his adenoids were three times larger than most kids, which is common for those with CF. He was then diagnosed with CF.
“Now our life has a new normal. We do lots of nebulizers, we do lots of antibiotic therapy, we do lots of chest therapy, and you can’t see it, but right now Braden has permanent feeding tube. He has an inability to gain weight and that is because of cystic fibrosis,” she said.
But it doesn’t limit him. He plays hockey and baseball, hunts and participates in water sports.
“The more active they are, the better they are,” she said.
Braden has been named a children’s ambassador for the new Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation of Saskatchewan, and the Thompson family is looking forward to the hospital’s completion.
While there is no cure for CF, people are working very hard towards advancements to ease the impact of the condition.
The money raised will go to CF Canada’s 42 clinics across Canada, and to research efforts.
“I keep saying to people that 50 bucks helps one adult CF patient receive care at a hospital at no charge,” said McIntyre.
Without the funds raised, people would not be able to receive the care they have now, McIntyre said.
