The 2018 Elliot Lake "Light the Night Walk" raised $1,400 in pledge dollars and attracted 22 walkers to Saturday night's chilly fundraising walk for Leukemia and Lymphoma.
After consuming coffee and other hot beverages inside the walkers made their way through downtown Elliot Lake from their marshalling point at St. Vincent de Paul on Elizabeth Walk. They carried special battery-powered lanterns for safety and so others could identify them passing by.
Organizers Roger and Cori Hachey were thankful for the turnout which showed a decrease over their first effort last year when twenty walkers took part raising $2,400 for the Leukemia and Lyphoma Society of Canada.
The benefactors are Canadians struggling with cancers. Logan Marchisella, 11, was joined by his father Elliot Lake Mayor Dan Marchisella , on the chilly trek. The father-son team brought in $230 in pledges by themselves.
Logan's wish is to see an end to Leukemia. The young man and his family endured years of treatment at the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa when he was battling the disease when he was just 3-years-old.
Now in remission, his tough journey is never far from mind for Logan. He wants to give something back in thanks for the medical professionals and procedures that helped him. In his words, "It's time to beat cancer."
As for the Hacheys, Roger plans to organize another Light the Night Walk in 2019. He says the lesson learned on the weekend is you can never count on Mother Nature to help you out with your plans.