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Howard
Armstrong Centre Joins With 150 Other Pools Across The Nation For BIG SWIM
FOR ARTHRITIS
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The Foresters BIG Swim for Arthritis is the first event of its kind in
Canada
involving approximately 150 pools, from
one coast, to another. This national swimming event is designed to
increase awareness about the benefits of water-based activity for those
with arthritis, and to raise funds for The Arthritis Society. The event
takes place in pools across the country from
April 20 – 23, 2006
. It will be held in
Valley East
on April 21 from 9 a.m. to noon.
Christine Brosseau, on
the right in the photo, will be one of the swimmers participating in the
event at the Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre in
Valley East
. She is shown with Anne Gervais, Facility
Pool Operator.
Anne, who was instrumental in making the arrangements to have her
pool involved in the event, invites people of all ages and physical
abilities to participate in the Foresters BIG Swim and help raise funds
for the Arthritis Society. The event includes distance swims, aquafit and
aqua “fun” for children, all designed to inspire Canadians to engage
in water-based exercise.
For people who have arthritis, swimming and water-based activity is
one of the best ways of exercising and maintaining a good physical fitness
level.
The Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre offers a Pool Therapy Class
every Tuesday and Thursday from
2
to
3 p.m.
where people with arthritis can
participate in an instructor-lead program of swimming and exercise.
Christine, who is a
victim of rheumatoid arthritis, began swimming two years ago. She can
often be found in the pool several hours a day, taking advantage of adult
swims and public swimming sessions. Her goal is to complete the 5000
meters necessary to receive a “Gold
Medal” at the Foresters BIG Swim event. That will require her to
swim 200 laps of the pool in about three hours. She now swims between 60
and 100 laps a day and is “training” for the big day on April 22. The
best she has ever done to date is 2000 laps over a 17 day period.
Christine will be at
the Hanmer Valley Shopping Centre every Saturday between now and the BIG
event, seeking sponsorship donations and providing information and
inspiration to people interested in helping the Arthritis Society.
All residents are
encouraged to provide Christine with a couple of dollars in an effort to
make life a bit better for the many people in our society who are affected
by this disease. We all wish Christine the best of luck in achieving her
“Gold Medal”. |
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Christine Brosseau Looks For
Pledges For BIG SWIM FOR ARTHRITIS |
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In the above photo, Christine and Sammy, spent many
Saturdays in
the mall collecting pledges and providing information about the arthritis
society to hundreds of shoppers. |
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With The Big Event Only Days Away, Christine Brosseau Is
Looking Forward To The Challenge |
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Christine Brosseau and her pet, Sammy, were at the Hanmer
Valley Shopping Centre on Easter Saturday collecting pledges for the 1st Annual BIG SWIM FOR ARTHRITIS at the Howard
Armstrong Centre. The Foresters BIG Swim for Arthritis is the first event of its kind in
Canada
involving approximately 150 pools, from
one coast, to another. This national swimming event is designed to
increase awareness about the benefits of water-based activity for those
with arthritis, and to raise funds for The Arthritis Society. The event
takes place in pools across the country from
April 20 – 23, 2006
. Christine will be taking to the water with up to a dozen local swimmers in
Valley East
on April 21 from 9 a.m. to noon.
Christine, who herself is a
victim of rheumatoid arthritis, began swimming two years ago. She can
often be found in the pool several hours a day, taking advantage of adult
swims and public swimming sessions. Her goal is to complete the 5000
meters necessary to receive a “Gold
Medal” at the Foresters BIG Swim event. That will require her to
swim 200 laps of the pool in about three hours.
At this point in her training, with less than a week to go, she is covering 110 lengths of the pool in 90 minutes.
Moreover, she claims that she actually feels stronger once she gets past
the first 80 or 90 laps. The only thing keeping her from swimming any more
than that is the fact that the swim times are not long enough. She is
confident that her “training” program is right on schedule for the big day on April
21.
Christine has already achieved one of her two goals.
She passed the $500 in total pledges. Now all that is left is for her to
swim the 5000 meters and she is confident that she will accomplish that
personal goal as well.
All residents are
encouraged to provide Christine with a couple of dollars in an effort to
make life a bit better for the many people in our society who are affected
by this disease. We all wish Christine the best of luck in achieving her
“Gold Medal”.
If you would like to sponsor Christine, call her by phone at 897-6266
or email |
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Christine Brosseau is all smiles and doesn't look the worse
for wear as she is shown moments after completing a 5000 metre swim in 2
hours and 50 minutes on April 21, 2006 at the Howard Armstrong Recreation
Centre. She swam a full 200 laps as part of the First Annual Foresters BIG
Swim for Arthritis and was presented with a medal in honour of her
accomplishment from Bob McOrmond, President of the Sudbury Shunia Branch
#228. |
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The Foresters BIG Swim for Arthritis was the first event of its kind in
Canada
involving approximately 150 pools, from
one coast, to another. This national swimming event is designed to
increase awareness about the benefits of water-based activity for those
with arthritis, and to raise funds for The Arthritis Society. The event
took place in pools across the country from
April 20 – 23, 2006.
The Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre was the only place in Sudbury where
the event was hosted locally.
Christine, who is a
victim of rheumatoid arthritis, began swimming two years ago. She can
often be found in the pool several hours a day, taking advantage of adult
swims and public swimming sessions.
Her goal was to complete the 5000
meters necessary to receive a “Gold
Medal” and to raise over $500 in pledges. She accomplished both
objectives! |
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Andrea Lucas, seated on the left, is a Fund-Raising
Assistant with the Arthritis Society. She and Mary-Lou Hussak, Manager of
Regional Development for Northeastern Ontario, were on hand for the
Foresters BIG Swim for Arthritis, handing out information brochures to
visitors to the Howard Armstrong Recreation Centre during the event.
Standing in the photo, from the left, are Bob McOrmond, Anne Gervais,
Facility Pool Operator, Pete Wilford, a participant who swam 2500 metres,
and Pat McOrmond.
According to Mary-Lou, Arthritis doesn't seem to get as high a profile
as some of the other diseases like Heart & Stroke and Cancer, but it
is definitely a life-debilitating disease that afflicts a large segment of
the population. In fact, statistics show that with a rate of 22.8% of the
population of the Greater Sudbury Area being diagnosed with some form of
arthritis, this is the 2nd highest region in Ontario with the disease. The
provincial average is only 17%.
The Foresters have been in existence for over 126 years and have been
established in Sudbury since 1972. They have a local membership of
approximately 600, with a couple of dozen active members involved in
numerous fund-raising events such as the BIG SWIM.
Christine Brosseau generated a great deal of publicity for the event in
Valley East. She and her pet bird, Sammy, have been at the mall collecting
pledges every Saturday for over a month. To see the other articles that
have been written about Christine's quest, follow the links below: |
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