By Jim Russell
I’ve been president of the Halifax chapter for 18 of the last 20 years. Sometimes the chapter is more active and sometimes it’s less active, but that’s to be expected. Every volunteer organization has its ups and downs — and that’s especially true when your members are dealing with Huntington disease. Sometimes folks need to step back and focus on themselves and their loved ones.
For the last little while the chapter has been in a bit of a lull. But now we’re ramping up again, thanks to Peggy Carmichael. She went to HSC’s National Conference last fall and came back – all fired up. At our recent chapter potluck we decided it was time to submit an application to HSC to host the 2016 National Conference. We started planning our fall Indy — an event that raises $15,000 to $20,000 a year — and thanks to Shannon Olson who has stepped forward to coordinate our annual Amaryllis campaign. It was a busy and very productive meeting!
I believe we all should contribute something, somewhere, somehow, and for me it’s the Huntington Society. My motivation is simple. This is one of the world’s worst diseases, affecting generations of families for such a long period of time.
When we’re out there raising money, we help to support our local Huntington’s Resource Centre Director so she provide cruial services to families in our area impacted by HD. And, of course, we’re raising money for research. I firmly believe that there will be a treatment or cure for HD soon, and I’m proud that the Halifax chapter is playing our part.
Onward and ever upward!