Walkers pose for a picture prior to their walk. Photo by Tommy Wong.
One in 10 Canadians is affected by a kidney disease during their lives and so participants walked in the Kidney Foundation of North Bay and District walkathon Sunday to raise money for their cause. At the end of the day, expectations were exceeded, and over $8,000 was raised.
The walk, which started at Lee Park didn't see a single drop of rain, which made the atmosphere that much better. People of all ages could be seen in the crowd. Some as young as three years old, and some who in their 70's.
Age was not a factor though, because everyone was there for the same reason.
Jeff Serran was one of the participants at the walk and noted that kidney research is something that hits at home.
Serran's aunt unfortunately lost her battle to a kidney disease, and it has been a goal for Serran to raise more awareness for the disease as well. Kidney disease is currently incurable and when someone is suffering from it, they lose a lot of their energy.
Claude Devost is the president of the local chapter of the kidney foundation and he's a dialysis patient himself. He's currently waiting for a kidney transplant and knows how much of a negative impact the disease can have on a person. He was thrilled to see how many people showed up for the walk as well.
“We have families here, we have people who have transplants, and people waiting for transplants,” said Devost who was all smiles at the event.
“It makes people aware of what's going on. Kidney disease is sort of a secret disease and nobody knows much about it. I go to dialysis three times a week at the hospital for four hours each session. And when you go home, you sleep for two or three hours, you just don't have the energy like you used to have. The disease slows you right down and we also have to watch our diet and our fluid intake.”
Within the last few years, Canadians have raised over 10 million dollars in the hopes of finding a cure for the disease.
For more information about the Kidney Foundation of Canada or to make a donation, you can visit their website at http://www.kidney.ca/
