CIBC fourth ‘Walk for the Cure’ hailed a regional success

A wave of hope swept across the region this month, as thousands of men, women and children, clad in either pink or white, took to the streets in 16 Dutch and English speaking territories, as part of regional bank CIBC FirstCaribbean’s annual crusade against cancer.

The bank’s various businesses across its regional footprint joined with cancer support organizations in hosting the fourth annual CIBC FirstCaribbean Walk For the Cure,{{more}} the bank’s flagship fund-raising activity, which attracted approximately 21,000 walkers region-wide this year, doubling the number that participated last year.

Fuelled by the unflagging fund-raising efforts of staff from all aspects of the business, as well as solid corporate partnerships, this year’s events have so far raised over USD$360,000, which will all go to support critical cancer care, purchase vital equipment to treat patients and host general education programmes to create greater awareness of the disease across the region. In the first three years, the walk raised approximately US$330,000.

“We are overwhelmed at the response of our staff and the various corporate sponsors right across the region that have joined with us this year to make this event a phenomenal success,” said co-chair of this year’s walk, CIBC FirstCaribbean’s executive Trevor Torzsas.

He and fellow co-chair and CIBC executive Mark St Hill thanked the scores of donors who visited the various branches of the bank across the region or logged on online to make their donations to the cause.

“We are extremely grateful for every single donation that we have received, both large and small, toward this life-changing event. We know that many still want to donate and they can do so right up to the end of October by visiting any one of our branches or logging on to our online banking network and making your donations,” Torzsas said.

This year’s walk saw record numbers transform a major highway in Barbados into a sea of pink, as a record 15,000 walkers braved the afternoon heat in a strong show of support for those who lost the battle to the disease and the corps of determined survivors, many of whom led off the walk.

In St Vincent and the Greandines, fund-raising close to tripled last year’s donation figures, with over 300 walkers registered. Funds will be presented to the Cancer Society at the end of October, 2015.

In the Cayman Islands and St Maarten, this year’s events were even more poignant as staff in those islands dedicated their walks to the memory of colleagues who succumbed to the disease this year.

In addition to walking in the memory of Al Aaron, several male and female staffers in the Cayman Islands also shaved their heads as part of a national fund-raiser.

The memory of Yolanda Fleming-Levons was foremost in the minds of many staffers and walkers in St Maarten, as the walk there was dedicated to the former Customer Service officer with the bank there.

The Bahamas, despite suffering the onslaught of Hurricane Joaquin, also held successful walk events on October 4 and 17. The same holds true for Dominica, which also despite the widespread devastation caused by Tropical Storm Erika, will stage a walk on October 31.

“We are immensely proud of our employees across the region. They have come together to make this cause a common one, to assist those in our communities who are affected by this disease,” St Hill said.

Walk for the Cure is held primarily on the first weekend in October to coincide with the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation’s CIBC Run for the Cure, sponsored by the bank’s parent company, CIBC. CIBC has been supporting this event for more than 20 years, donating millions to breast cancer research in Canada.