Robin Smith of Kelowna had his first personal encounter with the BC Cancer Foundation in 2012 when he heard these three words: “You have cancer.”
In 2014, Smith was inducted into the Tour de Cure, the province’s largest cycling fundraiser, launched in 2009 to raise funds for cancer research in British Columbia.
Since Smith is an avid cyclist and still enjoys good health despite his battle with chronic lymphoma (CLL), he decided to take up cycling.
“I have to give credit to Cyclepath,” said Smith. “For many years I was a solo rider with Team RBC in the Okanagan and rode on the Cyclepath team.”
Smith is now co-captain of the 25-man Kelowna RBC team.
Over the course of the decade, the cancer fighter has personally raised over $40,000 and raised over $7,000 for the 2024 ride.
Smith is confident that the money he raised has helped remove CLL from the list of serious diseases. BC Cancer reported that over 1,300 people were diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2021.
“The money we raise allows us to direct the funds to the causes we want to focus on. After touring BC Cancer’s facility and seeing the work they do there and where they deal with lymphoma, I know that the money I raise will go towards the work that has been done over the last decade.”
The Tour de Cure takes place on August 24th and 25th and the cyclists ride 100 kilometers each day.
The cyclists start in Cloverdale and ride to Chilliwack on Saturday evening, where there is a celebration. On Sunday morning the cyclists head back to Hope.
“There are cheer stations, people from the community are out there waving signs and cheering people on the whole way,” Smith said, adding that he loves the spirit and camaraderie of the ride.
Smith and the Kelowna team set a fundraising goal of $150,000 and had already exceeded it before the trip.
Learn more or donate to the team at TourdeCure.ca.
