Branwen Hainsworth of Nelson is gearing up for the eighth annual Ride to Conquer Cancer benefiting the BC Cancer Foundation. The ride brings together communities of riders, survivors and their supporters for one common goal: A world free from cancer. Riders will travel over two days, Aug. 27 and 28.
With one in three British Columbians developing some form of cancer in their lifetime, Hainsworth viewed the Ride to Conquer Cancer as a call to action and set a goal of raising $2,500 for the 2016 event. This is an achievable goal, but requires community support. Every rider must raise a minimum of $2,500 to participate and for the ride to continue making crucial impacts on cancer research and care at the BC Cancer Agency.
Hainsworth, a math and science teacher at Stanley Humphries Secondary in Castlegar, decided to register for the 2016 ride because a friend’s father had just passed and her partner’s mom was starting yet another round of chemotherapy.
Another close family friend had just passed as well. Hainsworth saw people doing the ride in 2010 and thought it would be a great challenge and a wonderful way to raise money. She decided to try and raise the $2,500 needed to ride by asking people on Facebook and at work to pledge an amount for every day she rode to Castlegar to work from Shoreacres.
She started riding on March 29 and has completed 40 days of riding thus far. Her goal is to ride 60 days until the end of the school year and then start doing longer rides to more fully prepare for the ride to Seattle in August. So far, Hainsworth has raised $3,075. “The generosity of family and friends has been overwhelming,” she says.
This is the eighth annual Ride to Conquer Cancer in BC. To date, the event has helped raise $70 million for the BC Cancer Foundation. Funds raised by the ride are put to use immediately supporting breakthrough research programs at the BC Cancer Agency such as pediatric genome sequencing project, ANGELYC project and ovarian cancer research program.
To help Hainsworth reach her new goal of $4,000 or to join her on this epic journey, visit conquercancer.ca or call 1-888-771-BIKE.