The Day I Quit

Today I quit something.

Anyone that knows me knows that this is not of character. It is not as if this is the first time I quit anything, however it is a rare event. And to quit something that I committed to, had other people relying on my attendance for and paid for up front, is a pretty big deal.

I quit the Ride to Conquer Cancer benefitting the Princess Margaret Hospital. I had signed up in December for the 200km bike ride from Niagara Falls to Toronto. I have thought about doing this ride for almost 3 years now as my girlfriend rides in it and has asked me to join each year. I hummed and hawed each time but always refused. Until this year, I said yes and actually committed.  I paid the $50 non-refundable registration fee and even requested gift cards towards upgrading my stallion (bike) as Christmas gifts. I have also been spinning every week as part of my training for the ride. I had every intention of giving it my all. I was very motivated by the challenge of the 200km ride, however when it came time to collect donations and ask for funding, I hit a wall. I just couldn’t do it.

My reason for quitting the ride is because I don’t believe in the cause. Don’t get me wrong; The Ride to Conquer Cancer has helped many, many cancer patients as well as their families. A large attraction of this charity is that it is the participants’ choice as to which cancer they want their funds to go to (i.e. breast cancer, prostate, etc.). Riders are obliged to raise $2500 to participate. Not even this worried me. Back in 2005, I participated in the first Weekend to End Breast Cancer in Montreal. The goal was the same, $2500, however I actually exceeded this goal by quite a bit! My mom was a patient at the hospital who hosted this charity at the time. I saw first hand where the $9.1 million dollars from this one event went. When mom returned for her same chemo treatment as she had been doing for months, there were brand new hardwood floors, new leather chairs and high-end beds for the patients. Esthetically the new cancer center looked amazing. But where else did this $9.1 million dollars go? Without wanting to offend any of my readers, I will not go into detail as to why all of this bothered me so much. After all, it is simply my opinion. But let’s just say the whole experience left a very bad taste in my mouth. When it was time to fundraise and to ask for support for The Ride to Conquer Cancer, that same bad taste returned. How can I ask for support to a cause I wouldn’t support? I couldn’t stop thinking about how the time and effort required to raise $2500 and how it could be better applied to a cause that I truly believed in. So that’s exactly what I decided to do!

Biking for Bellies (what do you think of the name??), the fundraiser I am starting will also be a 200km bike ride but all proceeds will be going to the Thorncliffe Park Public School Breakfast Program. I chose Thorncliffe Park because this school, located just in East York, Toronto, is the largest elementary school in North America! I had the privilege of visiting this school back in September. I learned that 2000 kids attend this school, many of which are new Canadians. 1300 kids participate in the breakfast program daily, which is run only by volunteers. The organizers have managed to get the cost of the program down to $1/student/day however, if you do your math, this amounts to $1300/day, $6500/week, $26,000/ month! Finding funding for this program is a constant battle and the future of this program is always unknown. Considering that the meal provided by the Thorncliffe Park Breakfast Program is often the only meal many of the 1300 kids receive each day, I cannot think of a better cause to ride for.

Many details for Biking for Bellies are still being worked out, however it is quite certain the ride will be from Toronto to Bobcaygeon. Participants are requested to have a fundraising goal of $2500 and my hopes are to have a minimum of 10 riders.  If this is something you would be interested in, please contact me either here or my email: kimmydee@gmail.com.