2nd Annual Share the Care Bike Marathon Raises $3500+ !
Remarkable School Children Come Through for the MCAG!
Submitted by Jackie Jung
MANITOUWADGE, ON – Saturday, August 27th, 2011 the 2nd Annual Share the Care Bike Fundraiser for the Manitouwadge Cancer Assistance Group was held in Manitouwadge under a warm late summer sun. 10 Bikers took up the challenge of either a 54km bike marathon from the junction of Hwy 614 and Hwy 17 in to Manitouwadge or a 10km bike marathon, joining those who were on the 54km trek as they passed the airport.
Riders were received by a crowd of fans, friends and family at their end point the Manitouwadge Recreation Centre parking lot MCAG held a Welcome Reception and luncheon for which the hungry riders were quite appreciative.
It was a very successful community event and our riders were an inspiration to us all. Their participation in these challenging rides was so appreciated! The money raised will certainly go far to help those in need in our town! What giving communities Manitouwadge and Marathon are and we are in awe of their contributions. With the help and generosity of our community partners and friends we are able to continue to help those fighting their battle with cancer.
At the time of this release, $3500 of pledges and donations had been collected from the event and there were more pledges expected by mail.
There was great support from both the MCAG volunteers and other volunteers from the community. Great supporters fundraised for others when they could not ride themselves. Barrick-Hemlo and local businesses generously donated money, water or prizes.
We were very proud of four young riders, elementary school students, who courageously faced the challenge Jesse Gervais, Gunnar Nelson, Sydney-Mae Courtemanche and Hunter Courtemanche. Jesse and Gunnar each rode the entire 54km route in honour of relatives lost to cancer while Sydney-Mae and Hunter tackled the 10km route. Many were inspired by these young riders.
Sydney-Mae and Hunter were not alone on their trek, the whole Courtemanche family rode the 10 km route, their bikes decorated with blue the colour representing colon cancer awareness, in honour of one of Sydney’s family members. They collected pledges from as far as Sudbury and Southern Ontario!
People are so kind and generous. Michelle Poulin-Barten road the 10 km and we appreciated her coming out. Husband and wife team – Cory and Ginette Bedard challenged themselves for the big ride and were successful in recording a personal best time. The couple had been doing a lot of bush road riding which clearly trained them well. Many had families out helping the MCAG and cheering their loved ones on.
**Please Note – Unfortunately OntarioNewsNorth.com’s Editor was out of town the day of this awesome event, as was the author of this article. If you have photos OR video from the Annual MCAG Share the Care Bike Fundraiser please send them to Editor@OntarioNewsNorh
