Giving back to the place that saved my life

Leaving a Legacy (From the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation 2019 Annual Report) Margaret Lynch was the first in Canada to receive an experimental bone marrow transplant at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Today, she is healthy and thriving, dedicated to giving back to the place that saved her life. Margaret has cycled in The Ontario Ride to Conquer Cancer nine times, to raise funds for cancer research. “I know firsthand that supporting The Princess Margaret will further cancer research and get us closer to a world without cancer,” says Margaret. Margaret was only 30 years old when she was diagnosed [...]

By |2023-10-15T21:46:13+00:00September 26th, 2019|cycling, Publication, Survivor, Writer|0 Comments
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2019 Ride to Conquer Cancer

What a glorious Ride to Conquer Cancer weekend! 4,573 participants raised over $19.2 million for cancer research. Our 60-person Heme Team raised $212,327 to support blood cancer research at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Over 2 days, I cycled 221 km. It was my ninth ride and 80 donors helped me raise $13,231. However, the numbers don’t tell the whole story. The Ride is an emotional rollercoaster, starting and finishing both days with exuberance. Spirits are high at pit stops along the way as riders consume thousands of bananas, oranges, brownies, and water while waiting for port-a-potties. But it’s [...]

By |2023-10-15T21:46:48+00:00June 10th, 2019|cycling, Survivor, Writer|0 Comments
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Toronto Star personal essay

After cancer the fear never leaves you, but she’s fighting back In 1988, I celebrated my thirty-first birthday in a hospital bed, convinced it would be my last. Days earlier, I’d woken from a coma after two grand mal seizures—caused by three months of chemotherapy for the rare leukemia that had overtaken my body. Doctors used the word “grim.” My father bought me a cemetery plot. One month later in May, I received an experimental bone marrow transplant at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto—a long shot with less than an eight per cent chance of success. On that day, [...]

By |2023-10-15T21:47:25+00:00June 1st, 2019|cycling, Publication, School, Survivor, Writer|0 Comments
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CBC Radio: This Happened to Me (video)

I walked the Camino to celebrate 25 years of survival Soon after my essay was broadcast on The Sunday Edition, a CBC video producer approached me for their new YouTube series, This Happened to Me, about pivotal moments in people's lives. My life-changing Camino de Santiago story is now available as a YouTube video, enhanced by wonderful animations that beautifully (and sometimes humorously) illuminate my words. The story is excerpted from my King's MFA memoir project about life and love after cancer. Back to Complete List of Blog Posts:

By |2023-10-15T21:48:13+00:00May 9th, 2019|Publication, School, Survivor, Writer|0 Comments
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Birthday Celebration

Thirty-one years ago, I celebrated my birthday in a hospital bed; positive it would be my last. Days earlier, I’d woken from a coma after two grand mal seizures caused by three months of chemotherapy for the rare leukemia that had invaded my body. Doctors used the word “grim.” My father bought me a cemetery plot. The following month I would receive an experimental bone marrow transplant that would save my life and start me on a journey of hope, healing, and forgiveness. Today I’m filled with gratitude as I celebrate my second chance at life. And I’m writing [...]

By |2023-10-15T21:49:17+00:00April 4th, 2019|Survivor, Writer|0 Comments
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CBC Radio: The Sunday Edition (broadcast)

A pilgrim's journey: This woman hiked hundreds of kilometres to find peace They say the Camino calls you and you walk when you're ready, when you need it most. October of 2013 was that time for me. I was celebrating the 25-year anniversary of my cancer survival and I had a successful career fundraising for the hospital that had saved my life. I had hoped to go with a partner, a friend, or a group of people. But at 56, after two marriages, with no children, I was on my own again. The first marriage took place during my cancer [...]

By |2023-10-15T21:49:46+00:00February 17th, 2019|Publication, Survivor, Writer|0 Comments
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