NOTL Community Palliative Care is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its Healing Cycle fundraising ride – but this year there’s an extra incentive to donate.
Every dollar donated up to $25,000 will be matched by Niagara-on-the-Lake developer Rainer Hummel.
Palliative Care executive director Bonnie Bagnulo said it’s a perfect fit for the 10th year of the ride.
“Holy smokes, I can’t believe it,” she said in an interview.
Because of the generous pledge, she said she’s trying to make sure she hits at least the $25,000 target.
All of the money goes directly toward helping people in NOTL who require end-of-life care — something Hummel says many of us will need.
““At the end of the day, we’re all going to die. Many of us may die in less-than-ideal circumstances where we need assistance,” he said in an interview.
He has supported the organization’s fundraisers every year, he said, but after his girlfriend’s mother had a severe head injury, he said NOTL Palliative Care was there to help.
“(NOTL) Palliative Care has supplied her with a wheelchair and have been very helpful to the family,” he said.
“Basically, when you have a situation like that, there’s very few agencies that you can depend on or lean on and they were the first to come to the table to offer assistance.”
Another big reason he supports the organization is that his own family doctor in NOTL is on the board of directors, along with some others from town.
“I think that speaks volumes for the quality of what that organization is and what it provides the community,” he said.
“This type of care within our own community, created by members of our community, has far more value than far-reaching provincial programs that are either inaccessible or are stretched to the absolute limits,” he said.
“By providing it within our community, it serves our community.”
He’d like to see more people recognize the value of the service NOTL Palliative Care provides and hopes others will help the run reach its target.
“When it is a service that virtually every one of us will either use ourselves or a close family member will use, why are we not supporting it more?
