Armed with Poles

Here is our home on the Ottawa Hospital Foundation fund raising centre:

AWP Fundraising Page

Send your friends, family and colleagues this way!

A big hello from me to all of this year’s AWP members!

Some of you are new to the team this year and therefore, don’t know me  yet. My name is Cleo Thompson and Anna and I started this team together just after I lost my very dear grandmother to cancer in 2008.  I miss being on the team this year but am a bit over extended this  spring between my two full time jobs, my two small children and a much needed vacation last month (first in 3 years!). I hope to get out to walk with you all soon.

Anna has kept me updated with the tremendous success of the team again this year. I hear we are over 40 members strong and that there is a fundraising goal of $10000 this year… Let’s see, some quick math tells me that’s about $250 to be raised by each of you to meet the goal. No problem! We raised just over $7000 the first year we did this, which did me very proud. That money was matched (at 2.5 times) by the government making it around $18,000 which we specifically donated to the brand new Ottawa Cancer Centre… a place my family could have used desperately just months before while we watched my Granny lose her battle. Last year, with some amazing fund-raising rock stars and a very committed team, we raised an astounding $21,000 all on our own!!

Armed With Poles has gained the attention of the media and community. We have a reputation of showing up on race day with a head turning presence at the start line and a very noticeable sum of money raised. I can’t wait to see what you guys do this year and I will be cheering from the side lines!

Best of luck!
Cleo Thompson

One of the big hits at the nutrition talk was the part about natural electrolyte drinks, in addition to coconut water, we all seemed to love the apricot water that you can make yourself at home. Here is the recipe and a message from Judi:

Apricot Water
1 litre of water
6-8 dried organic – sulfite free – apricots (6 if they are large and plump or 8 if they are a little on the small side)

Put the apricots in the bottom of a glass 1 litre pitcher and fill with water.  Allow to sit approximately 8 hours.  Squeeze out the apricots and refrigerate the electrolyte water.

I recommend drinking it on long walks and hot days.  It’s also perfect to include in your post-workout smoothie to help alleviate muscle cramping.
Enjoy!

Judi

Two years ago this team was created with the intention of giving back to the community and our little part of the world. In the process we all got a little fitter and stronger.  Here is another opportunity to contribute – that won’t cost you more than your old running shoes and a toonie.

The organization “Sole responsibility” collects and sends gently used running shoes to Africa. So as you are upgrading your running shoes before the big race, here’s a chance to give those old ones a new life.

I will be collecting shoes at all the remaining walks before the race, please bring along a toonie too if you can. If you prefer to donate directly in one of the many stores that participate, that’s an option too.

If you are curious about this organization, you can read more about them here.

With the base building phase of the training behind us, we can now shift our focus to bigger and better things. It is time to put a little bit of effort and energy into the fund raising! In past years this team has done a tremendous job of raising money as a group, together we are strong. With 4 weeks to go to race day – now is the time to get organized.

We have a team page on the Ottawa Hospital Foundation web-page. Go to this link and click on the “join team” button in the upper left corner. This will let you set up your own page and you can even add your own photo. From here you can email friends and family all over the world and tell them about your hard work and what we are working towards.

This year we are asking that everyone tries for $250 in fund raising per person. You will  be surprised how easy it is to reach that goal. If you reach that level you will get your entry fee to the race refunded. Also – there will be great prices rewarded within our team. Last year we had prices from Leki, Bushtukah and Solefit Orthotics.