Another Exceptional Event for an Exceptional Cause

Congratulations to the organizing committee of the Bearskin Airlines Hope Classic women’s curling bonspiel, their sponsors and the 48 teams that participated in another successful year. Together, they raised $142,000 for breast cancer through the Exceptional Cancer Care Campaign.

The focus is more on fun than on curling during the weekend event, held February 6th-8th at the Fort William Curling Club. Over the past 19 years, this event has raised close to $2.7 towards the fight against breast cancer. “Hope is something that is multiplied when it is shared, especially amongst friends, and the Fort William Curling Club is a building full of friends during the weekend,” says Sue Childs, longstanding Chair of the organizing committee.

All of the funds have supported the Linda Buchan Centre in saving lives by providing generous funding for state-of-the-art breast imaging equipment to ensure that the women in Northwestern Ontario have access to exceptional breast screening and assessment services close to home.

The Linda Buchan Centre, named in honour of Linda Buchan who started the bonspiel in 1997, is an Ontario Breast Screening Program affiliate and Northwestern Ontario’s highest volume comprehensive breast assessment centre. It sees about 30 women a day, or about 150 women per week. Overall, it performs up to 15 stereotactic core biopsies and 30 ultrasound core biopsies per month.

“The Linda Buchan Centre prides itself on our ability to provide state of the art screening and diagnostic services for the patients in our region,” says Michele Miller, Acting Director, Diagnostic Services. “And it is through the ongoing support of the Bearskin Airlines Hope Classic that we are able to fulfill our commitment.”