Rebecca Perkins

With Gratitude

WOW! Together we have done it and raised over $5000!

I am so blown away and so grateful for all the support. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

It has been a fun week of training. On Monday I met with a few of the Bow Valley Firefighters and together we marched up Tunnel Mountain wearing the SCBA tanks and helmets. It was a great opportunity to share information about Wellspring and how we are supporting over 70 people living with cancer in the Bow Valley with programming running locally at the Nordic Center in winter and surrounding mountains in summer. A shoutout to the Rocky Mountain Outlook for sharing some happy snaps in the local paper.

On Tuesday I was in Red Deer connecting and training with a group of inspiring women all geared up and ready for the fast-approaching stairclimb event on June 9. As we walked up and down the stairs at fire station 6, we talked about the gift of volunteering. I was reminded of the quote that volunteers don’t necessarily have more time, they just have big hearts! Isn’t this so true! I’ve been honored to have been able to connect with many volunteer firefighters who passionately are giving their time and energy for an important cause all whilst balancing this with a full time job and parenting or other life commitments. At Wellspring we are always spreading the message that volunteers are the heartbeat of our organization and as Outreach Manager I get to see firsthand the impact that our Community Connectors have on building stronger cancer support communities all across Alberta. Again, I was excited to share that we in fact have in-person programming running in Red Deer, the Cancer Connect program is facilitated by a paid professional Program Leader and supported wholeheartedly by an amazing team of local volunteers.

So, with only 10 days to go to the big event – I want to express my sincere and heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has donated, to all the volunteers out there both firefighters and Wellspring supporters and to all the cheerleaders sending me positive words and messages – THANK YOU!!

A deep bow to you. I appreciate you!!

With gratitude,

Bec 

Team Grande Cache!

Yesterday was a highlight of my Wellspring Alberta road trip and Firefighter stairclimb training.

The team in Grande Cache went over and above to create a special community event at the fire station. When I first reached out to the Grande Cache team to see if they would like to join me in a stairclimb training session they immediately jumped on board enthusiastically. The team rallied together to not only make it a training session but a whole community event and fundraiser for Wellspring Alberta.

One of the many things that I have learned throughout my road trips is the important role that the fire station has in the local community not only for protecting the community and surrounding areas from fires and other emergencies but with community support, comradery, events, activities, and training. It was wonderful to see so many local folks come out to learn about Wellspring Alberta and to enjoy a delicious burger or homemade piece of pie. Kids and adults of all ages marched up the stairs, some taking the challenge on to wear a SCBA tank. The Grande Cache Firefighters led the way in full gear and masks. Seeing the weight of all their gear made me grateful that we only have to wear the helmet, boots, coveralls and SCBA tank for the actual event.

Bryon one of the volunteer firefighters and primary organizer of the event was kind enough to take me up in the bucket which is connected to the giant ladder on the back of the truck! We went up 104 feet which is around 30m and I had a stunning view of Grande Cache and the surrounding mountains!

Fire Chief Aandy generously shared lots of information about the station and how it operates, her passion for her important job was infectious. I had the opportunity to share lots of information about Wellspring and how we are currently supporting people living with cancer in over 140 different communities across Alberta, including Grande Cache!

One of my goals of the stairclimb and road trip combo was to spread the word that the money raised goes to ensuring that no one has to face cancer alone across ALL of Alberta. For the regional communities it can be difficult to see Wellspring in the community if we don’t have a physical center or in-person program however I want you to please be reassured that we are connecting with caregivers and those diagnosed via the phone or via one of our 70+ online programs.

The cheery on top of a fantastic event yesterday was that the community of Grande Cache raised $1000 which they have donated to my stairclimb fundraiser which in turn goes to Wellspring Alberta. I’m immensely grateful for the support and effort that the Grande Cache team went to! I look forward to seeing you all on June 9 in Calgary!!

With gratitude,

Bec 

Training in the Land Down Under

I have just returned from a very heartwarming trip back to Australia to meet my darling niece and to be reunited with my family and friends. During my visit I returned to my old stomping ground in Brisbane city and climbed the Kangaroo Point stairs 12 times to hit the magic 1370 stairs!

Kangaroo Point is also in fact a rock-climbing crag and a place I have spent many hours. It was great to combine both worlds; training in Australian for a Canadian cause. The humidity was at 100% and although I was not in the full gear that I need to wear for the actual event I think it was helpful to be training in the heat. 

 The other quick update I have is that I leave for my next Wellspring Alberta road trip this Friday starting with Drayton Valley then onto Whitecourt, Barrhead, Bonnyville and Lloydminster. I’ll be connecting and training with the local firefighters in these communities and looking at ways to build stronger cancer support communities locally.

 A highlight of my previous road trip to southern Alberta was training with the local firefighters in Drumheller where we climbed the stairs inside the giant dinosaur! You can see photos in the gallery on this blog.

 As of today, we have 52 days to go! I welcome your suggestions for hosting a fundraising event or activity to help push me towards my $5000 target. All ideas welcome! Once again, a huge thank you to everyone who has donated and supported myself and Wellspring Alberta thus far.

 With gratitude,

Bec 

Stepping It Up

Hi Everyone,

It has been a while since I posted an update.

I’ve been continuing to train for the stairclimb challenge when possible, life is full and I’m finding stairs trickier to fit in than other forms of exercise such as skiing, yoga, running or climbing.

One of my favorite recent training sessions took place at the Calgary Tower!

A number of fellow Wellspring colleagues joined in and together we climbed the 802 stairs to the top of the Calgary Tower after work. Training is always so much more fun when you are surrounded by motivated and enthusiast people. I’m so grateful to have such a supportive team at Wellspring Alberta. Once we reached the top an energetic colleague turned to me and said – “we are only halfway Bec – let’s go again!” So off we went, climbing a total of 1604 stairs, each lap for me took between 7-8 minutes. It sounds quick but it hurts!

It was great to have the opportunity to climb consistently UP compared to doing lots of laps up and down smaller stairclimbs.  

A few of my learnings include;

·         Warm up ! It hurts the lungs to go from sitting at a desk to moving quickly up stairs.

·        Use the hand rails to also help pull yourself up.

·        Keep a consistent pace – find the pace that makes you feel uncomfortable and maintain that.

·        Don’t count the flights of stairs – head down and get in the rhythm.

·      Be efficient on the landings.

·      Smile when possible 😊 It takes the seriousness of out of it!

I’ve also had the pleasure of meeting with Geoff Pyke a local fellow Canmore resident and the winner of the Firefighter stairclimb for a number of years. Geoff was very kind to share with me his training plan and a few more helpful tips!

I was hoping to train with the local Firefighters in Medicine Hat and Drumheller this week however the snowstorm is making that reality a bit difficult so we may need to postpone and re-connect on a less snowy day.

When possible, I’ve also been using the stair climber at the local gym but I really need to start training with the gear! I feel that is going to really step things up!

I’m extremely grateful for the donations and support – I’ve almost hit the half way mark towards my fundraising goal. A huge thank you to everyone who has donated – your generosity helps to ensure that no one has to face cancer alone.

I’m off to Australia next week and plan to do a few sets of stairs in my old stomping ground – the Kangaroo Point Cliffs in Brisbane City.  

With gratitude, Bec 

Training Has Started

Hi Supporters! 

With 4 months till the Firefighter Stairclimb I have officially started stairclimb training! I've trained for a few different events in my life ... half marathons, marathons and triathlons but climbing stairs is new! I welcome any tips you have at all. I recently connected with a wonderful Firefighter from Medicine Hat who has completed the stairclimb previously and his number 1 tip for me is to train with weight and wear the boots. A very helpful tip – thank you!

 I kicked off my training on a foggy night in Calgary, marching up and down the Memorial stairs 10 times to hit around the 1400 stair mark. I was joined by my good friend Justin and husband Josh. Stairs are so much more fun with friends. Over the next four months I hope to train in many different communities with many different people. If you are interested in joining me for a training session, please reach out!

 Over the weekend I climbed another 10 times up and down the Canmore stairs by the Bow River – the view was spectacular but I have a sneaky feeling the session was made easier by the amount of snow on the steps – however every step still counts! Whilst I didn’t have any friends take part, I was surrounded by many people walking up the stairs to the Nordic Centre for the World Cup Cross-country Ski event. Nothing like being surrounded by athletes to help the motivation!

 The hard part about stairclimb training I am finding is that it is difficult to replicate the actual event which will be climbing consistently up! Whereas during training sessions I get to recover on the down. So, I am putting a call out! Please let me know what the longest stairs are in your community! Comment below or email me, send photos and I’ll meet you there!

 I am so grateful for all the amazing donations coming through, a huge heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you! Your support means the world to me, to Wellspring Alberta and to everyone who is living with cancer.

 With gratitude, Bec 

rebeccap@wellspringalberta.ca 

Outreach Manager takes on Challenge the Chief