One More Year BBQ

“Imagine waking up one morning to a perfectly normal day, and before you go to bed that night, everything you know about your life has changed. Your hopes, your dreams, your future, everything is now in question. All you’re left with is sitting on the side of your bed asking yourself, “Is this it, is this how I end?”
On September 12th, 2014 doctors at Royal Victoria Hospital told me I had stage four cancer. I would probably not live a year.
I asked for a referral to Princess Margaret and started counting each day on Facebook. I didn’t really expect to get past more than a couple of hundred days. However, as the first anniversary approached, my friend Barb decided we needed to celebrate this milestone with a fundraiser/barbecue. Thanks to her hard work we raised $1,200 for the Psychosocial Oncology Clinic at Princess Margaret Hospital. Another year passed and now we had a name for our event, ”One More Year”. On Day 731, with the assistance of more folks we raised $8,000.
Simply put “One More Year” refers to the fact I, along with thousands of others, have managed to last one more year with cancer, even after some of us were told we would have already lost our battle. This is thanks in large part to the support of the doctors and staff of Princess Margaret Hospital. If you would like to follow my journey, you can find my Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/LionelJStrang
On Saturday, August 26th, 2017 the third annual “One More Year”, Day 1096 barbecue will be held. Our goal this year is $15,000!!
This year I have also added one more challenge. Starting August 19th I will be walking from Toronto to the barbeque in Barrie. I know I am 63 and I will be slow, I know it will be hard. But I know it will be worth it. My goal is to bring awareness and attention to the important role the Psychosocial Oncology Clinic at Princess Margaret plays in helping all of us fight for “One More Day.”

My route will be University north to Gerrard; Gerrard east to Yonge; north on Yonge to Davisville; east on Davisville to Mount Pleasant (this area represents my family’s roots); north on Mount Pleasant to Blythwood; west on Blythwood to Yonge; and north to Barrie. Follow my progress on my Twitter account – @lionelstrang

Donations can be made at our GoFundMe page – https://www.gofundme.com/one-more-yearbbq

For more information contact Barb Webster at: websterbarb@ymail.com or my sister Pam Macdonald at: newmarket@yd.com
Lionel J. Strang – 705-737-7048