This Sunday marks the 25th walking of the Annual Walk for Hospice of the North Shore and Greater Boston.
The walk, a three-mile route through Danvers, is intended to honor the lives and memories of those who have experienced hospice care. All funds raised go directly to providing care for those in need throughout the North Shore and Greater Boston.
According to Ronna Thur, a co-chair on the organizing committee for the walk, an estimated 5,000 people turned out for the walk in 2011 and raised over $250,000.
Many of the participants in the walk are local athletes, who form teams with their fellow team members and coaches. Among these athletes this year are the Masconomet Chieftains, who will have multiple sports teams walking and contributing towards the cause.
As of Sept. 19, the football, football cheerleading, golf and cross-country teams will be participating it the walk. Heading the list is the football team, which has been a part of the walk for more than 15 years.
Head Coach Jim Pugh couldn’t recall exactly how the team first heard of the race, whether through a parent, or word of mouth, but when he did, he knew it was a good cause to support.
“Back in the 1990s, we had a couple parents who had cancer so supporting this cause was a great fit,” said Pugh.
The walk is not just an opportunity for the athletes to gain community service, but to give back to their community.
“The football players and the athletes at Masco get a lot of things handed to them,” said Pugh. “And this is a good bonding experience for the kids to be doing something together and giving back to the community.”
Having supported the cause through donations and participation for over 15 years, it has become a tradition for the football team. It was this sense of tradition that caught the attention of Ben Goldman, a senior, and Kevin Martin, a junior on the cross-country team.
“I heard how the football team does it every year and wanted to do that with the cross country team,” said Goldman.
Together, Goldman and Martin began prepping the team for the walk. Over the past few weeks, they have handed out flyers and tried to rally support by getting as many teams members on board for the walk.
This would be the first year the cross-country team has done the walk or any kind of charity event, but boys head coach Pat Mahoney is not surprised that this group is the first to start.
“We have a great group of upperclassmen,” said Mahoney. “I’m not surprised by the character of this team, that they’d be putting together something like this.”
Walking with heavy hearts
On each team, there are a few cases where the walk goes beyond community service. For some, the walk can be very personal.
“I had two grandparents go through hospice,” said Martin. “And it really helped them pass on. The more people we get, the better, because this is a great cause and you know the money is going right towards helping those people.”
Andrew Swimm, a senior on the football team, also feels a connection to this walk.
“It means a lot,” Swimm said. “People in my family have had cancer and you know what they go through and it can be tough to watch, and to help out a cause like hospice is just great.”
Many of the athletes are still young and may not understand what hospice care is and how it works. Some of the coaches and athletes, who have had to experience it, have explained it to their teams and teammates so they can understand exactly just how important supporting this cause is.
“Not everyone knows what hospice is,” said Mahoney. “Some of these kids are young so they might not have had to go through that … I said that for those that have they know how great this cause is, and for those that may not have, I told them just how meaningful these people can be to someone going through something tough.”
Ben Goldman echoed his coach’s words. “It’s great to find out what hospice is and learn what we can do to help,” he said.
Coach Pugh may not have personally been touched by hospice but he understands the importance.
“I’ve never personally had anyone experience hospice, but I’ve been touched by cancer,” he said.
Despite the walk having dark undertones, Ronna Thur maintains that the walk itself is a fun event.
“It’s not a solemn walk,” said Thur. “It’s really a celebration of life. An opportunity to understand the importance of family closeness in happy and difficult times … it’s quite a spirited walk.”
It is often in our most difficult and trying times that we turn to our family, friends, and our community; this walk illustrates that lesson to us.
“Being a part of the Masco community for the past 33 years, I feel that this is a great experience for us and the kids. Families go, friends go, and it’s become a nice tradition,” she added.
The walk begins this Sunday, Sept. 23, at St. John’s Prep in Danvers. Registration begins at 8 a.m. and the walk begins at 9 a.m. For more info visit www.hns.org/walk.