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More than 350 elves of all ages
and sizes joined together at Collège Boréal
this afternoon, to participate in the 2018 Santa Shuffle
Sudbury for the Salvation Army.
The Santa Shuffle celebrated
its 28th anniversary this year, with Sudbury and 37 other
cities across Canada participating to support the less
fortunate of their communities.
Greater Sudbury has participated
in this national fundraiser for more than 10 years (actually
since 2004), with funds allocated to each of The Salvation
Army's ministry units, including the Cedar Place women's
shelter and community church.
This year's event included
a 1K elf walk/run and a 5K santa shuffle fun run/walk,
with proceeds supporting services and programming at the
New Life Centre, Men's Shelter on Larch St.
For Santa Shuffle Sudbury
Race Director, Loretta Maillet, this annual event means
"the world, (knowing) that people off of our street
have a place to stay." "It's
very hard to see what these men and women go through,
that we see with mental health, addictions, no family,
loneliness," said Maillet.
"If we can just be a beacon of light to them, that's
what we want to do."
Among race participants was
Noah Matheson, who reminded all in attendance, the power
of community and perseverance. Noah
Matheson is both deaf and blind, but that did not stop
him from pursuing his goal of running a race.
Matheson's intervenor with
the Canadian Deaf Blind, Kayla Reed, said that Matheson
practiced for a year to be able to complete the 5K race
without the use of his wheelchair. "We like to write
SMART goals based on their likes and dislike," said
Reed.
"So Noah's really taken
a liking to going off on walks and he started running
and skipping at Bell Park, so we thought well maybe it
would be a good goal for him to do a fun run of some sort."
This summer, Matheson's support
team selected the 2018 Santa Shuffle Sudbury based on
the goals and timelines of his projected training.
In addition to frequent walks
at Moonlight Beach and Bell Park, Matheson walked the
YMCA track once a week, until finally he was able to compete
alongside Sudbury's best.
All proceeds of the event
remain local said Maillet, including the thousands of
dollars raised in pledges by teams and hundreds of dollars
raised by individuals. For more information on the Santa
Shuffle or to show your support, visit santashuffle.ca.
All
Results Here
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