Get out and cheer for PARC at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
Louis Dionne will be running at at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon Sunday for PARC, which is a drop-in centre on Queen Street West that offers meals, resources and support to people in need.
Photo/COURTESY
Even more than Louis Dionne loves running, he loves the Parkdale Activity-Recreation Centre (PARC).
"I so believe in PARC. It's just so important that people be given a chance and given a place to begin," Dionne said. "There is so much trauma and so much poverty, people have such horrendous issues and without a support to try again, it's very difficult and things don't change."
In his work with PARC, Dionne said he has seen much hardship and also the importance of PARC, a drop-in centre on Queen Street West that offers meals, resources and support to people in need.
"So many of the difficulties people have are so unfair, (their difficulties) are not about anything that they did. For me, there is a strong element of social justice and just a sense that human beings are all equal," Dionne said, adding it is for this reason he feels honoured to tie up his sneakers and put his name and his heart behind PARC at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
On Sunday, Sept. 26, this former marathon runner and 19-year employee of PARC, is running to support the centre in the Scotiabank marathon.
Dionne is one of four champion runners lacing up in support of PARC. The others are Parkdale-High Park MPP Cheri DiNovo, Paul Miller from the High Park Running Room and Peggy Nash, president of the federal NDP.
The Neighbourhood Challenge
PARC is representing Parkdale/Roncesvalles in the Neighbourhood Cheering and Entertainment Centre.
"Really there are a couple different components (of the marathon), one is the Charity Challenge and one is the Neighbourhood Challenge," said Charmaine Frado, PARC's resource development director.
There are 12 neighbourhoods from across Toronto participating.
PARC will have its own cheering section located in front of the Boulevard Club at 1491 Lake Shore Boulevard West and they are calling out to everyone in the neighbourhood to come support them.
"Our job is to get Parkdale and Roncesvalles neighbours out," Frado said. "These spectators are supposed to cheer on the runners."
In the booth there will be the PARC drummers, bands, dancers, tumblers and more.
Everyone who comes to the booth will get a T-shirt that says 'PARC Piecing it All Together' "because the whole idea is about diversity and bringing the neighbourhood together," Frado said.
PARC is asking people to make a pledge toward one of the four neighbourhood champion runners, and to support their local Neighbourhood Cheering and Entertainment Centre on race day.
The centre with the most people, most noise, best costumes and best entertainment, as decided by celebrity judges, will win $6,000 for first prize; $3,000 for second place; $2,000 for third place; and $1,000 for two honourable mentions.
Supports are asked to attend the booth between 7 and 10 a.m.
The Charity Challenge
The other component to the waterfront marathon is the Charity Challenge.
"People who want to support PARC and want to do the five-kilometre walk or run the half or the full marathon and get their own sponsors," Frado said. "For example, our ED (executive director) Victor Willis has a team called Team PARC, and you could join him on his team and get people to sponsor you."
Those who aren't running can go online and sponsor a runner or a team that is running in support of PARC.
All the money, which is raised in the name of PARC during the Charity Challenge, ends up in PARCs hands.
Visit http://parc.on.ca for more information on how to pledge or cheer for PARC at the Waterfront Marathon.