When Mississauga’s Jeff Rushton got together with some friends four years ago to start a cycling fundraiser for children with cancer, he had no idea how popular the event would become.This morning, 350 cyclists left from the Civic Centre to embark on the Tour For Kids, an epic bike ride around southern Ontario, while another 100 will be leaving Saturday morning for a shorter, but still grueling, ride.
And, while it’s unclear how much money will be raised this year, Rushton is pretty sure they're going to reach their goal - a whopping $1 million.
“I look forward to this every year,” he said with a smile. “It’s our way of helping give back to the community, give back to our family and friends. We started off from humble beginnings ... in the first year we raised $175,000, and now in our fourth year we’re up to a million dollars.”
Since its “humble beginnings,” the tour has raised more than $1.6 million, and 100 per cent of the donations go directly to three camps specifically designed for children with cancer: Camp Trillium, Camp Quality and Camp Oochigeas.
Participants who sign on for the four-day tour, which winds its way through Muskoka, the Haliburton Highlands and the Kawartha Lakes region, can choose either a 400-kilometre or 800-kilometre ride. The journey includes accommodations, entertainment, rest stations and meals along the way.
For many participants, the tour is an emotional experience. Many of them have experienced cancer themselves or seen their children fight, and sometimes lose to, the disease.
“Tour For Kids is a wonderful group,” said cyclist Sharon Andres, who is on her second tour and whose son is a cancer survivor who attends all three camps. “For a parent of a child who is surviving cancer, it’s amazing to me to see how many people go to support the camps. I’m honoured that these people are riding on my son's behalf, and all the other children. It’s just absolutely amazing to see the support.”
One participant, who had his right leg amputated below the knee due to a childhood bout with cancer, only found out about the Tour For Kids last summer, when he bumped into the free-wheeling pack as he biked his way across the country on his own cancer fundraiser.
“It was great to see this whole group of people doing the same thing I was doing,” said David Visschedyk, who attended Camp Oochigeas as a child. “It’s really nice to be able to give back to a camp that really meant a lot to me ... to be able to ride with a bunch of people who all are trying to support kids with cancer. I mean, you know you can’t really do many things better than that I think.”
The event kicked off with a ceremony and music this morning, while the hundreds of riders left en masse at 9 a.m. to cheers and whistles. They will be arriving back at the Civic Centre on Sunday, where riders and their supporters will enjoy entertainment, food and music, including a special concert featuring Steven Page of The Barenaked Ladies.
In Canada, approximately 1,700 children are diagnosed with cancer every year, while 10,000 are already living with cancer or its long-term effects. Childhood cancer is the leading cause of non-accidental death amongst children in Canada.
The ride is sponsored by a number of organizations, including the Investors Group, which help ensure that all of the donations go directly to the camps.
Tour For Kids is a part of the Coast to Coast Against Cancer Foundation, also founded by Rushton, which uses cycling and other active lifestyle events to raise awareness and funding for charities that help children and their families deal with cancer.
For more information, visit www.tourforkids.com.