The more things change for the Children’s Treatment Centre, the more they stay the same.

Especially when it’s come to the longstanding support the CTC has received from BMO, a relationship that goes back 15 years.

BMO, the major sponsor of the CTC’s Bike-A-Thon fundraising event, has made another $10,000 financial commitment, with the renewal of another three-year sponsorship term.

“BMO has been the main sponsor of the Bike-A-Thon since 2007,” said CTC vice-chair Dave Michaud, who along with Bike-A-Thon event chair Peter Asquini on Thursday morning visited BMO representatives in Cornwall at the location at the SmartCentres commercial plaza.

“(BMO’s support) is very much needed, and very appreciated. We continue to serve children in our community, without a waiting list, in part due to the generous contributions of BMO.”

Asquini and Michaud provided details on this year’s Bike-A-Thon, back for the first time since 2019, but minus the Plus that used to be a part of the event title.

The event will be held between June 1-30, with participants choosing their own date and whether to participate alone or with a family member, a friend, or a colleague. They can also pick their own location and route to follow to cycle or walk.

So it’s not virtual, but it’s not a traditional large, outdoor family-oriented gathering along the St. Lawrence River, either, and the the Bike-A-Thon Plus kick-off breakfast with a guest speaker, the pancake breakfast, and the barbecue lunch have all been cancelled.

“At this time it’s too soon to get back to the type of (Bike-A-Thon Plus) event we had been doing,” Asquini said.

Michaud called it baby steps in the return to more normal times, and he said it’s hoped the first large-gathering CTC fundraiser will be a celebrity roast late this summer and held for the first time since 2019.

During the pandemic the CTC has had to rely almost exclusively on corporate and individual donations to sustain the centre, which in 2021 marked 25 years in existence, but once again had many traditional fundraising events forced to be cancelled again, or dramatically altered in format.

At the start of 2022, CTC president Don Fairweather said the board of directors and its many volunteers will need to raise the $600,000 needed to run the centre, the money going almost exclusively to pay for the staff members that provide the counselling service, and to maintain the office and pay for the rent of the office.

As for this year’s Bike-A-Thon, it’s been planned with two objectives in mind: making it as safe as possible for all participants, and being able to hold it regardless of any unforeseen challenges arising in the next couple of months.

Participants are encouraged to contact the CTC by e-mail ([email protected]) , mail or by phone to register; participants will be able to download the sponsor sheet from the CTC website, or they can contact the CTC and sponsor sheets will be mailed or e-mailed to them.
There are several awards associated with the event, including the Chairman’s Award, presented to a member of the clergy who raises the most money in this event and submits the pledges collected to the CTC before the deadline. The President’s Award goes to a non-clergy person who raised the most money in the event, and both awards will be presented on July 29.