Oxford County currently has about 40 volunteer drivers
By
Mark Schadenberg
Piggy
Banks have always been a great place to store your change, but for the Canadian
Cancer Society (CCS) locally the change is to now save your coins and collect
dollars for their volunteer drivers’ program by using a piggy bank you pick up
at the CCS office.
The
program is called Pigs Of Hope.
With
family members often living outside of the area, it can be difficult for some
cancer patients to visit their doctors for out-of-town appointments or receive medical
care such as chemotherapy.
The
CCS has a valuable group of volunteer drivers – they are reimbursed for gas, so
the average cost per trio is about $50. If you have spare time, you could
consider volunteering for this integral service.
This
past weekend I talked to a gentleman who said after he retires, he plans on
volunteering with the CCS in this exact capacity. It’s a way to give back to
the community, but most certainly make a big difference for one family.
Those
with a cancer diagnosis require assistance for travelling often, but also often
need a friendly face to talk to before and after treatments.
“Cancer
changes everything,” says CCS Oxford County community office manager Jan
Cunningham in noting that all the money from Pigs Of Hope will be directed to
the local drivers program.
The
idea is to adopt a piggy bank, and you may decorate it and maybe even give your
‘pet’ a name, and then feed it your spare change.
Jan Cunningham from the CCS on Daytime Oxford show
on Rogers TV with hosts Jerry and Sarah Acchione
The
program, however, is very serious.
“One
in five cancer patients can not get to their cancer medical appointments,”
added Cunningham. “The Canadian Cancer Society has stepped up with this volunteer
drivers program to alleviate the stress of transportation that a patient might
have. We are pleased to offer this program and all funds collected from the
Pigs Of Hope program will be directed to this program.”
Cunningham,
who was a guest on the Rogers TV show Daytime Oxford and was also interviewed
on the Heart FM morning show last week to chat about this initiative, knows how
important this unique monetary fund is.
“Before
your cancer diagnosis you may have been very self sufficient, but now you’re
reaching out for support,” said Cunningham.
You
can collect dollars and coins until Jan 10 and it can be ideally used at your
home as you welcome many visitors over the Christmas season, but also to be displayed
at a place of business.
Since
the average cost of one volunteer driver appointment is $50, the CCS suggests a
minimum of a $50 donation when you return your Piggy Bank to the association.
Drivers are most certainly volunteers, but they are reimbursed for gas.
A
story in the Woodstock Sentinel-Review noted the following stat: Last year in Oxford County, 39 drivers travelled
over 70,000 km, driving more than 100 patients to 1,222 cancer-related
appointments.
Call
519
537-5592
Visit
65
Springbank Ave North
You
may also volunteer to be a driver for cancer patients
ANOTHER
SUCCESSFUL EVENT
Cool
Runnings, by the way, back in late October, which was a cross-country run
through Roth Park on the banks of the Thames River in Woodstock, raised $14,112.
Keep an eye on this space for updates on Relay
For Life in 2017, which is June 9 at 7 p.m. at CASS.
LINKS:
TWITTER:
@ccsoxfordcounty
@rflwoodstock
Mark Schadenberg, Sales
Representative
Senior Real Estate Specialist
(SRES designation)
Royal LePage Triland Realty
Independently Owned & Operated, Brokerage
757 Dundas St, Woodstock
(519) 537-1553, cell or text
Email: mschadenberg@rogers.com
Twitter: markroyallepage
Facebook: Mark Schadenberg, Royal LePage Triland
Discussion . . . Direction . . . Determination . . .
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