Hats off to Alzheimer Toronto for organizing the 2009 Manulife Financial Walk for Memories on January 31, 2009 at Allen Labert Galleria, Brookfield Place, on Yonge Street, in Toronto, Ontario to raise funds for Alzheimer Society.
Alzheimer Society sure does know how to put on a fun and organized rally filled with super heros, celebrities, jugglers, musicians, magicians, dancers, escape artists, stilt-walkers and more, in addition to the 3/4 hour window-shop through Toronto’s (underground) Path, which connects some of Toronto’s finest high rises.
We enjoyed the continental breakfast and seamless and courteous registration and inspiration an event like this generates.
There were awesome costumes, like first place winners “Biker Grannies from Hell” shown inset.
To experience it from my camera, please do visit my facebook galleries; the Alzheimer Walk and The Path and please add your comments or request higher quality version if you’d like to reprint!
Team aWEBthatWORKS raised $538.00 for Alzheimer Society in it’s inaugral year, thanks to the generosity shown by:
| Valerie Jarvie |
| Tracy Donnelly |
| Sue Sutcliffe |
| Sector57 – $25.00 |
| Scugog Women’s Networking Breakfast Group – $60.00 |
| Sandra Terry |
| Paula Beare Sullivan |
| Paul Feldman – $20.00 |
| Pamela Mansfield |
| Mark Canning |
| Louise Thibert – $20.00 |
| Laurie Lafrance – $25.00 |
| Judy MacKinnon |
| Jon Thibert |
| Jennifer Thibert |
| Jamie Sutcliffe |
| Heather O’Connor – $10.00 |
| Bobbie Ermel |
| Christina Lochrie |
| Diane Gibbens |
| Jan McLeod |
| Laura Bryan |
| Myra Gillis |
| Norma Pilotte |
| Pauline McGregor |
| Kirk & Joan Speirs |
We had a lot of fun, plan to do it again next year, and hope you’ll join us. Click here for more information on joining the aWEBthatWORKS team and/or creating your own team.
Hope to see you in 2010!
2009 Manulife Walk For Memories – January 31st, 2009
6:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning was an early rise for us … we’d been out to a euchre game the evening before and didn’t get to be until after midnight! Our daughter, Susan, lives in Tyrone, so she slept over because the walk registration was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. in the Allen Lambert Galleria – Brookfield Place at 181 Bay Street. We had been encouraged to come dressed in the era of our favourite music but this proved to be too difficult a task for us first time round (Curtis – country/western, Jean – crooners, rock & roll, semi-classical, Susan – Kiss, Stones, Billy Joel, etc.), so we decided to settle for identical t-shirts. After a fast shower and breakfast, we headed out.
Flat rate parking at $9.00 at Wellington and Yonge seemed a good deal to us and an elevator took us directly up to the registration desk and right on time. We confirmed our donations and each one of us received a ticket for goody bags, an Alzheimer button and a yellow shoe lace which would be part of a tying ceremony later in the morning. Now we had time to catch our breath, check our coats at the free coat check and look around.
Golly gee … Batman! Susan was swept up into Batman’s arms … wow, what a photo op! We headed to the ‘Incentives’ table and picked up our free t-shirts then, a few steps farther along, we were given a goody bag … hmmm, pens, tissues, fridge magnet, rubber jar opener, sticky notes, clip-on glasses holder, scotch tape, buy-one-get-one-free popcorn coupon, CD, chocolate bar, hard candies, MAXXX Heat Wrap patches, Canadian Living magazine … WOW!
Strolling further along the Wellington Street atrium, we were offered treats: bagels and cream cheese, muffins, bananas, oranges, apples, juice. Darn – next year we’ll be sure not to have breakfast or be on a diet for this event! We spotted lots of celebrities: Elvis was there (or at least a living statue of Elvis), Curt had his picture taken with Marilyn Monroe and Lucille Ball … personally I thought Marilyn’s hugs were just a little too ‘bosomy’ but Curt didn’t seem to mind at all! A very tall juggler (on stilts) kept the children amused and parents busy snapping pictures of the tall and the short of it. We were entertained by a magic show, flamboyant mambo dancers and Motown musical group before the opening ceremonies began in earnest with very short speeches from a Manulife rep. who presented a cheque for $55,000.00, the Alzheimer Society Toronto president who advised there were 557 participants walking, Donna Canliffe (Liberal-Ontario) and Michael Ignatieff (Liberal-Federal). Following participation in the yellow shoelace tying ceremony and Manulife warm-up team exercises, the walk began.
Our route followed ‘The Path’ along the shops, boutiques and eateries which populate the underground from Union Station northward to the business district of Toronto. Along the route we were entertained by various musical groups and soloists … country, pop, jazz – you name it, we had it, as well as a mime that provided unspoken encouragement. With so much to see and hear the walk time passed very quickly and we were soon back in the Wellington Street atrium for the closing ceremonies.
There were prizes for best costume (won by 3 ‘senior’ women dressed in motorcycle gear, ‘Grannies From Hell’), most funds raised (a group of employees from Manulife raised over $22,000.00), and two survey-completion draws, followed by short speeches of thank you’s and the announcement that the event had raised $420,670.00!
On behalf of our family, I thank you very much for your donation to Alzheimer Society Toronto. We had a lot of fun, enjoyed our morning very much and plan, God willing, to participate again next year. Perhaps you’d like to join us? Remember, don’t eat breakfast!