CIBC Run for the Cure is a team effort

Judy Weller from Delhi is surrounded by family as she rings the bell at the CIBC Run for the Cure finish line Sunday morning in Simcoe.

Chris Abbott

Editor

It was an emotional morning for the CIBC Run for the Cure committee on Sunday.

“We want to give a huge thank you to everyone who signed up to participate, fundraised, donated and helped spread the word about the Run,” said Norfolk committee director Gail Catherwood at the Lions Ball Park in Simcoe.

“Your efforts, along with the generosity of our donors and sponsors, are making an incredible difference. It truly takes a society to take on breast cancer. So, on my behalf, I want to thank everybody, over the years, it’s great…”

Catherwood announced this year’s fundraising – in support of breast cancer research and services – had reached $62,470 as of early Sunday morning.

“That brings our total for this community over $3 million, so thank you very, very much.”

All fundraising award winners announced on Sunday will be posted on their website and social media (Simcoe - Canadian Cancer Society CIBC Run for the Cure on Facebook).

“We were waiting to get to the $3 million mark and that did it for us,” said Catherwood after approximately 130 participants were on their way (1-km and 5-km routes), noting the 2025 total as of Friday night was substantially more than last year’s $46,000 - with even more funds expected to come in over the next few weeks.

It’s a team effort, she said, crediting the community, the organizing committee, all the run-day volunteers, and local and national sponsors.

“Some of these girls have been with me from the start,” said Catherwood, who had introduced the CIBC Run for the Cure to Simcoe and Norfolk County 26 years ago.

It was Judy Weller’s first CIBC Run for the Cure.

Weller, who completed the 1-km walk on Sunday, was diagnosed with cancer on May 1st, 2025.

“I found my treatment to be very quick. I saw my surgeon May 12th, and I had a lumpectomy on June 5th. My chemo started on August 8. Eight treatments over 16 weeks… and I have four more left. Next Friday is my fifth.”

The breast cancer diagnosis came as a shock to Weller, who lives in Delhi.

“People want to come and see you, and I said ‘ok.’ They said ‘I’m glad you look ok.’ But that’s the thing,” she smiled, “you don’t know how you’re supposed to look.”

After completing Sunday’s walk, Weller was happy to ‘ring the bell’ at the finish line, surrounded by family.

“I am going to be a survivor. I have no doubt that I am going to get through this chemo and then radiation. And I’ll be here next year, hopefully doing the 5-km – I need to practice.

“Chemo’s rough, but I try to stay positive. If I have my down times, it’s usually with my husband. I’ve cried when my kids aren’t around… except for today. Today has been really emotional. My family, they’ve been my support. They’ve all been very, very supportive. Since Day 1, they’ve been with me all along. It’s wonderful. And the people I work with, they have been very supportive.

“This (Run for the Cure) is just great that they have this for breast cancer,” Weller added. “This was actually supposed to be chemo week for me – I thought maybe I would sit here and watch them go over the finish line. But my daughter wanted to do it and my weeks switched so… I thought ok.”

Jenn Prouse, from Langton, was Sunday’s Run for the Cure keynote speaker.

“Standing here, looking out at all of you, it is overwhelming in the best possible way,” said Prouse, a 10-year breast cancer survivor. “Each one of you is here because breast cancer has touched your life somehow, whether you are a survivor, supporting someone in treatment, honouring someone we’ve lost, or simply showing up because you believe in this cause. I want to start by saying thank you from the bottom of my heart…”

Over the past decade, Prouse said she learned “strength does not always come from within, sometimes it comes from the people around you, from family who hold you up when you’re at your weakest, from friends who stand by you when you feel like giving up, from the doctors, nurses and care teams that fight alongside you every single day.”

And from communities, she added.

“Being a survivor fills me with overwhelming gratitude… But it also comes with grief. Grief for those who didn’t get this chance. Today we walk and we run for them too.

“The CIBC Run for the Cure isn’t just an event, it’s the reason that more of us get to celebrate milestones like five years, 10 years, and beyond. It’s the reason research keeps moving forward. It’s the reason we stand up here with hope in our hearts, and for the future.

“To those of you still in treatment, you are never alone.

“And to my fellow survivors, every scar, every story, every victory is proof of our resilience.”

***

Norfolk firefighters Doug Rixmann, Noah Richtie and Katie Petrella from the Simcoe Firefighters Association ran 5-km Sunday – in full firefighter gear - carrying 45-50 pounds of gear, including 30-pound air tanks.

It was Ritchie’s first CIBC Run for the Cure and Petrella’s second.

“I did it in high school, does that count?” smiled Petrella, who was also pushing a stroller Sunday while in firefighter gear.

“In gear?” asked Rixmann, who has done the Run the past 10-plus years. “No? No that doesn’t count,” he laughed.

“It was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be but it was a lot of fun,” said Ritchie. “The guy who is double my age beat me by… how many minutes?”

“As the Simcoe Firefighters Association, we have always supported the Run for the Cure,” said Rixmann, “either with people or donations that people give to us through our scrap metal bins.

“It’s a little bit of suffering on our part, short-term, compared to what people do every day when they are battling cancer,” Rixmann added. “It’s just our way to show support.”

“My grandma is cancer-free – she had radiation back in the day – so I was doing it for her,” said Petrella.

“We’ve had firefighters, just in the past few years, that have had cancer, too,” Rixmann noted. “Cancer is unfortunately well-known in the fire service, so anything we can do in support…”