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17 · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, May 13, 2009 Robertson keeps walking the Walk for ALS patients By Angela Blackburn OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF It's tough to keep pace with Oakville's Lindsay Robertson -- the driving force behind the upcoming May 18 Walk for ALS. ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) also known as Lou Gehrig's disease) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease. Those living with ALS become progressively paralyzed due to degeneration of the motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Eighty per cent of people with ALS die within two to five years of diagnosis -- unable to breathe or swallow. When Robertson, 20, found out her dad, Tim, had just been diagnosed with ALS in 2004, she quickly learned, too, that there was little she could do to help. That didn't deter her however. She and a team of family and friends called themselves Tim's Titans and participated in the annual Walk for ALS. The next year, Robertson founded the Halton Walk for ALS. "It was hard the first year. When you're a 16-year-old trying to organize a local walk, people don't pay much attention. When it raises $46,000 and involves 300 people, that changes," said Robertson. The St. Thomas Aquinas graduate, who is now wrapping up a degree in health sciences in Ottawa with sights set on a paramedic's career, received the ALS Society of Canada Mary Pollock WALK for ALS Award at an awards ceremony in Toronto on May 2. It was in recognition of her volunteer contributions to the ALS community of Canada. "Lindsay was 15 years old in 2004 when her father was told that he had ALS. This prompted her to begin volunteering for the ALS Society and forming her own walk team, raising more than $30,000 in two years. In 2005, she founded and organized the first Halton Walk for ALS. Funds were raised for much-needed medical equipment and research, totalling $46,000 for the first year, $85,000 in 2007, and $83,000 in 2008," said social worker Maureen Hills of the ALS Clinic at McMaster University Medical Centre. It came as good news -- though not the news Robertson wants to hear (the finding of a cure for ALS) as she heads into the 2009 edition of the Halton Walk for ALS. The 5-km walk will take place on Monday, May 18 at Bronte Creek Provincial Park (1219 Burloak Dr.). It will begin with registration at 1 p.m. in Parking Lot 1. The walk will begin at 2 p.m. To make a team, donate, get pledge forms or more information www.walk- forals.ca Robertson or Jane Allen at als_halton@yahoo.ca. More than 300 Halton residents hit the trails at Bronte Creek Provincial Park last at the third annual Halton WALK for ALS. Robertson said the walk not only raises funds for those with ALS, but also raises awareness of the disease, which she said has been on the rise in Halton in recent years. ALS is a terminal illness that results in the disintegration of motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Over time, patients with ALS become incapable of movement -- including eating and breathing -- while their ability to think and feel remains unchanged. ALS often strikes those who are active. It is merciless and it is expensive. Robertson said her dad's progress with the deadly disease has been slower than some. "It has not stopped him from working, he still commutes to Toronto two days a week in his power wheelchair," "My dad is pretty proud of me," people by surpassing their expectashe said. said Robertson, noting the success of tions," said Robertson, noting only Tim reached the point where he the newly-established local walk was about 20 per cent of patients live past spends most of his time in his power surprising to many. the five-year mark and her dad just wheelchair about 18 months ago, said "My dad is constantly surprising passed that mark in April. Robertson. For Robertson, her mom, Beth, and two younger brothers, Barry, 17 and Jeff 16, Tim's diagnosis "changed the dynamics of the family." Robertson said she was left with a feeling of being able to do very little to help her dad in the face of his diagnosis. Spring has sprung! While her dad had coached her in The bugs are about... hockey for many years, he was not able So fix those screens to keep them out! to go on the ice anymore shortly after his diagnosis, so she began coaching Aluminum or Fibreglass Mesh Installed in our shop her younger brothers' hockey teams in Any Size! the Minor Oaks Hockey Association $ 50 + applicable taxes (MOHA). Walking to raise funds and awarePet Resistant Screen ness was a way to help, but the closest Installed in our shop Any Size! Walk for ALS was either in Hamilton $ 00 or Mississauga. Robertson joined, but + applicable taxes soon established one closer to home 24 Hour Turnaround (except on Saturdays - pick up will be on Monday) where more family and friends could · Roller, Corner & Handle replacement are extra. participate. Sale ends May 30, 2009. Sprin g Rescreen Sale 37 75 550 Bronte Rd., Oakville 905.827.2951 LESS THAN LEVEL BAR AN D G R ILL For all your sports and entertainment needs. Thursday, May 14th LIVE T.H.E. Triple Thursdays "New DJ Alex B" with a triple mix of techno, house and electro $ Friday, May 15th Lost Boys Saturday, May 16th Alright Alright with 2 opening bands Sunday, May 17th pecial Drink S ay aturd S Nights 4 June 5-6, 2009 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Appleby College The Canadian Cancer Society Relay For Life is a 12-hour overnight non-competitive fundraising event. Relay gives people the opportunity to get together with family and friends and celebrate cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost to cancer, and fight back in the hope of finding a cure for this terrible disease. · · Register or join a team Participate in the Survivors' Victory Lap NEW EVERY SUNDAY Blues & Cues with Boogie Woogie Blues Man Michael Keys WITH SPECIAL GUEST DANNY MARKS 381 Kerr Street, Oakville 905-842-9009 Open Mon.-Sun. 5pm-2am www.lessthanlevel.ca United Way of Oakville seeks support for Mayor s Invitational Golf Tournament With three weeks remaining before the 21st Annual Mayor's Invitational Golf Tournament on June 2, 2009, there is still time for businesses and individuals to show their support! United Way is seeking sponsors, individual and corporate foursomes, and in-kind donations for the silent auction. To register, donate a prize or sponsor the tournament, please contact Anne-Marie Brown at (905) 845-5571, ext. 239. To get more information or to register online visit www.cancer.ca/relay or call the Oakville Unit at (905) 845-5231. Event Sponsor Survivor Sponsor GTA TV Media Sponsor Media Sponsors Site Sponsor Food Sponsor Supporting Sponsor