Renee Meyer is hoping to share her experience as the mother of a teenage cancer survivor.
Meyer's 13-year-old daughter, Ava Sevier, was diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis Type 1 when she was just over a year old.
The North Bay resident was part of a group of volunteers who were in Ottawa as part of advocacy work on behalf of the Canadian Cancer Society in conjunction with the organization's annual daffodil campaign.
"Last year and this year we have been received very warmly by the Federal MPs and every year we choose three to five top priority issues to try to advocate for better care," she said.
"We know there are a lot more than three to five issues that need to be changed, however, it is baby steps; one step at a time and one issue at a time."
One of the key points this year is advocating for improving support for caregivers.
"So we want to make that caregiver an income tax credit," she explained.
"We want to make it refundable for all Canadians regardless of their income. As a caregiver, there are a lot of out-of-pocket costs whether it is food when you are traveling, gas, the rental vehicle, and staying overnight in a hotel.
"There are a lot of things that are not covered so by making that tax credit refundable we would be able to help a lot more Canadians pay for the extra additional costs related to their cancer treatments."
Meyer knows firsthand how challenging it can be to travel back and forth between North Bay and SickKids Hospital in Toronto.
"Right now Ava is not on chemotherapy, thankfully she is what we call stable," she said about her daughter who attends M.T. Davidson public school in Callander.
"However, she does have multiple yearly appointments at Sick Kids. Obviously, we live in North Bay so you are looking at a four-hour trip down there, time off work, meals, and hotels. So making this tax credit refundable some of that money as caregivers we have to dish out, we get back come income tax time and it could help provide some financial relief."
Meyer hopes the members of parliament get the message.
"So when it came to the caregiver tax credit being refundable, almost every MP has been on board and thinks it is a great idea," she said.
It is events like this that make Meyer proud to be a volunteer.
"It has been an empowering experience to try to have control over something as we have no control over cancer," she admitted.
"I find doing the work helps keep us positive and motivated and I am also excited to bring Ava in as a volunteer next year when she turns 14."
