Around 100 community members took part in Brantford’s annual Kidney Walk, which kicked off from Harmony Square, on Sunday, September 22, 2024.
Hosted by the Kidney Foundation of Canada’s Brant County chapter, the walk is the nonprofits’ largest annual fundraising event and this year, the local chapter surpassed its goal of raising $40,000 with a grand total of $45,613.67.
“Today is our annual Kidney Walk and we’re also celebrating 60 years of the Kidney Foundation of Canada,” said Liz Giacinti, president of the Brant County chapter. “We have ten teams participating today and we have a lot of returning walkers as well as quite a few first-time walkers. I’m happy to say we’ve had a lot of fundraisers joining the Champion’s Club this year which is just awesome, those are people and teams who have raised over $1,000.”
Statistics indicate that one in ten Canadians are living with kidney disease, diabetes and high blood pressure being the leading causes, and funds from the walk will be used to support research, education, nutrition, and other crucial programs and services such as peer support groups and summer camps throughout the country.
On the day, participants arrived bright and early to register for the event and submit last minute donations to the cause. While they waited for the walk to start, many took the opportunity to browse and bid on the over 90 silent auction items, purchase 50/50 tickets, donate their gently used clothing items to Kidney Clothes, or play with their youngsters in the kids area.
Before heading out on either the one or three-kilometre walking route, Allie Ferguson, this year’s Kidney Walk Ambassador, took the time to share a bit about her kidney failure diagnosis with the crowd and to personally thank her donor’s family.
“I had my transplant in September of last year, and we got incredibly lucky to find out who my donor was, and today, her family and friends have come to walk with us in honour of our beautiful angel, Lillian,” said Ferguson. “I just want to say thank you all for being here, I know it’s not easy, but I love you all and thanks to your beautiful girl, I’m standing here alive today.”
Melissa Forsyth, Ferguson’s mother, said that her daughter’s diagnosis had come as a shock to the whole family.
“Allie was diagnosed with kidney failure in November of 2022 at the age of 15, she had been completely healthy and was asymptomatic, and we actually found out through regular blood work,” said Forsyth. “In January of 2023, she started peritoneal dialysis and then in September, less than a year from her diagnosis and the day after the 2023 Kidney Walk, we got a call that they had a kidney for her. We just balled, we all broke into tears.”
The mother said that because of the donation, her daughter has a new lease on life.
“The family of Allie’s donor is here walking with us today and this is the first time we’re meeting them,” she said. “It’s hard and it’s emotional because they lost their daughter to a tragic accident but because of their tragedy, it’s saved the lives of two girls who needed kidneys. We’re family now.”
Forsyth said that since receiving her transplant, her daughter has been doing amazing and that this year’s walk as a whole new meaning.
“We did the walk for the first time last year, and this year, it has a whole different meaning,” she said. “I just want to thank everybody in the community for showing up and showing their support, I know so many people have been affected by kidney disease, and we just appreciate all the support our team, and the walk in general, has had.”
As speeches wrapped up, the walkers, many of whom were sporting t-shirts, signs, and balloons in honour of their loved ones, participated in a short warm-up and gathered near Harmony Square’s Dalhousie Street for a ribbon cutting before heading out on the walk.
For those who are looking to contribute to the cause, donations can still be made by visiting https://kidney.akaraisin.com/ui/ONWALKS24/g/Brantford
As well, Giacinti encourages everyone to please consider registering their consent for organ donation.
“If you visit www.beadonor.ca it takes two minutes to register and all you need is your health card number. If more people did it, we wouldn’t have so many people on dialysis and the waitlist.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
