This spring, Team Maike will -- for the fifth year in a row -- be participating in the ALS Canada Walk to End ALS. 

For five years now, we have been joining together to celebrate the memory of our mother, friend, colleague, confidante, moral compass, voice of reason, inspiration, and endless source of laughter. It has become a sweet ritual and opportunity to connect with one another, talk about our memories of Maike, and catch up on each other's lives, all while raising funds to support research into the causes of ALS and potential cures and sponsor vital community services for families affected by ALS throughout Canada.

I love this event because when I think of my mom, I often remember the many friendships she nurtured and the communities she built throughout her lifetime. The strong relationships she maintained with her two closest friends, her parents and our broader family back in Germany, the new family she created in KW, the friends she made through playing bridge and attending the Unitarian congregation, the community she built around her work with the Huntington Society and her signature summer camp, which she organized every year and recruited everyone she knew to help out with as a volunteer.

Every year, I have seen new faces at the walk and learned something new about how my mother showed up in the world.

This is why it is important to me to keep the event going, despite not being available to participate in the official Kitchener-Waterloo walk on June 22nd.

Instead, Team Maike will be walking on Saturday, June 14th, at 10:30am at Snyder's Flats Conservation area. Bring your Tshirts from the first year of Team Maike's Walk (or whatever you prefer to wear) and walking shoes to complete a 5km walk and/or join for group brunch at Country Boy afterwards at 12pm.

Hope to see you then :)

I'll likely be driving from Toronto the morning of June 14th, leaving at 8:30am, so let me know if you need a ride!

Genet

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Now more than ever, the ALS community needs our support to provide hope and help to families affected by ALS. That’s why we're joining thousands of others, a part of a passionate and motivated community to “walk” in celebration of hope and a world free of ALS. Please consider supporting our team and donating towards this important cause.

Your support will help to:

• Further scientific progress by investing in the ALS Canada Research Program, which funds promising ALS research. The ALS Canada Research Program is the only national dedicated source of funding for ALS research across Canada. This program provides peer-reviewed grants to researchers whose work has the greatest potential to advance the field of ALS. There’s been more progress made in ALS research in the last five years than over the last century – we need to keep building on this momentum. 
• Create a better day-to-day reality for people and families living with ALS by providing community-based services throughout Ontario – this includes home visits and support groups – as well as necessary medical equipment like hospital beds, wheelchairs, stairlifts, and other items that increase safety in the home, at no cost to those who need them.

Join our team in making a difference. Please consider donating to our team fundraising page as we work toward a world free of ALS.

United, we are stronger together!