Help Brandon raise money

Friends, Family, and Colleagues,

As many of you know, last summer my father-in-law, Stanley, suffered a stroke. It came suddenly and changed his life in an instant; basic things like walking and eating quickly became a monumental challenge. He was fortunate to receive incredible care from the doctors and teams at Markham Stouffville Hospital and Bridgepoint Health, undergoing extensive rehab and monitoring in the months that followed.

Stanley quickly became an inspiration to everyone around him. Working tirelessly to hit major milestones week by week, I am incredibly happy to say that one year later, he is back to enjoying the things he loves most, especially playing golf.

Throughout this process, one thing that truly stood out to me was how much uncertainty still surrounds strokes today. There are so many unknowns in the risks, treatment, and recovery process that deeply impact both the patients and their families. Not everyone is able to make the incredible, inspirational progress that Stanley has, and we all know individuals who have not been as lucky.

With this in mind, I am running the Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 18th to raise money for the Heart and Stroke Foundation. The research Heart and Stroke funds is critical for early detection, advanced treatment, and ensuring more families can experience the kind of recovery Stanley did. This will be my first full marathon, and every donation goes a massive way towards helping me hit my $3,600 goal. I will also personally be donating $1 per kilometer run in training and on race day, beginning August 1^st.

As an added bonus to keep the fundraising exciting, I am using a unique app called Rally. Rally allows users to record voice notes that will play directly into my headphones once I hit specific mile intervals on race day. I am selling miles in exchange for donations, priced as follows: 

Miles 1–5: $50 
Miles 6–10: $75
Miles 11–15: $100
Miles 16–20: $125
Miles 21–26.2: $150

Feel free to team up with friends, make me laugh, or give me that extra push I’m going to need to get through all 26.2 miles! Miles will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis, and I will share the link to the Rally page to record your message once your donation is received.

 Thank you all for your generosity, encouragement, and support!

Brandon

PS – Here is a link to my Strava page to follow along with my training (and make sure I am honest on the fundraising match!) https://www.strava.com/athletes/56934492