A 73-year-old military veteran continues his cross-Alberta trip to raise funds and awareness about life-threatening illnesses the children and their families face.
Art Brochu, a member of the Lion’s Club in Alberta Beach, started his two-and-a-half long bicycle journey on May 1, 2017, and looks set to complete his 5,300 kilometre trek on July 20.
Art Brochu cycles so children can have their wish come true. (Photo/Children’s Wish Foundation)
“I was in the military for 26 years, and 7-and-a-half of those years were in war-torn countries,” said Brochu. “That’s why I’m basically doing this, so I can maybe help pay back those children whom we were unable to help in those places.
“When you’re over there, you walk by them all the time and you see them,” he continued. “It wasn’t our mandate to do humanitarian issues, but you still saw it every day. I always promised that I was going to do something for children as a result.”
And so, he partnered up with the Children’s Wish Foundation in Canada to do his second-ever project, which is called Art Cycles Alberta for Wishes.
Back in 2014, he did a national campaign, cycling from British Columbia all the way to Newfoundland for a total of 9,285 kilometres.
“I’ve met some of the families, and the children, through the foundation,” Brochu said. “I then realized, as a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder sufferer, that I had to do something. You hear all this publicity about PTSD among the military and the first responders, but these families with terminally-ill children suffer from it too, as do their communities. And so, everybody getting out and working together and helping each other it how we get through that.”
Brochu was in Rycroft yesterday after peddling through High Prairie and Peace River. He’s set to be in Beaverlodge today, and will be in Grande Prairie tomorrow and Valleyview on Monday.
Brochu is set to conclude his run in July on the steps of the St. Albert City Council building.
If you wish to help support his cause, you can call Art at 1-780-975-3541, or send him an email at abrochu@telusplanet.net. You can also check out his webpage by clicking here.
– Posted by BET
