Police and other emergency responders have raised more than half a million dollars in this year’s Cops for Cancer Tour de Coast.
The annual fundraiser for pediatric cancer research and care kicked off at the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw’s (Squamish Nation) Capilano Little Ones School on Sept. 13.
At the opening ceremony, children from the school gave the riders a traditional brushing with cedar boughs and presented them with special beads – a more modern tradition that stems from beads children collect as they go through cancer treatment.
“It was wonderful,” said Claire Wood, this year’s organizer.
Before they got onto the more strenuous part of their 800-kilometre tour, the Cops for Cancer peloton invited the school’s bicycle club members for a ride around the neighbourhood.
“Which was a very special moment for both our riders and the kids. They had the full police escort with the motorcycles and police cars and everything,” Wood said. “It looks like they had a great time. I think they were very excited when they learned that the sirens and the lights would be on for their bike ride.”
As of Tuesday, Sept. 17, the group had raised just over $505,000, on their way to a final goal of $650,000 at the tour’s end on Friday.
“One child with cancer is too many, and there’s progress being made, but at the end of the day, our goal and our mission is to make a world where no children have to go through this,” Wood said.
To help the Tour de Coast team reach their goal – both of fundraising and eliminating childhood cancer from the lexicon – visit the Cops for Cancer website.
This year’s tour includes 24 riders from 12 different police and first responder agencies.
Since the Cops for Cancer tours began 26 years ago, more than $54 million has been raised for the Canadian Cancer Society. The tours also help support Camp Good Times, a camp designed for kids whose lives have been impacted by a cancer diagnosis.
