Bernard Maillet is pretty excited these days as his annual Loop Around the Lake is just around the bend coming up on September 15. Maillet was presented with a $1500 dollar donation from Chestermere’s TD Canada Trust Bank. The bank has been on board from day one to support Maillet’s dream of raising $100,000 for the Chestermere Library. TD Canada Trust Bank Manager Deanne Hoeschen was proud to make the donation on behalf her company.
Hoeschen said that the bank‘s involvement in supporting the library is a natural since they have their own literacy campaign through their corporate Grade 2 book program. She will be making her debut in the September event in the walk/run portion of the race along with 4 other bank employees.
This unique initiative grew from a conversation 5 years ago between Maillet and then neighbor Marilyn King who is the chairperson for the library board. She was looking for ways to fundraise and asked for Maillet’s help to come up with an idea to support this goal and thus the Loop Around the Lake was born.
Maillet’s previous life had taken a turn for the worse spiraling down into an existence commandeered by a crack cocaine drug addiction. Through a life changing attempt to altar the trajectory in his life Maillet was able to break his habit by replacing his prior addiction with a healthy one. He said” I wanted to become an asset to my community instead of being an ass.”
As a teenager Maillet had turned to drugs for stimulation instead of cultivating it through more natural methods such as reading. He believes that everything happens for a reason and for him it was the opportunity to do something good for himself and his community through his rehabilitation. Each night he and his wife read inspirational works before going to bed and find that it is a good send off for a solid night’s sleep.
The goal he set was to raise $100,000 over a period of 10 years. This year will be number five. Last year’s event brought the total to $52,000. Maillet said, “The Provincial government matches 90 cents for every dollar that we raise.”
What is unique about the Loop is that no pledges are required. Each adult participant pays $50 and receives a t-shirt with all proceeds going to the fundraiser. There will be three races for adults to choose from: ½ marathon, 11.2 K run, 5 K run/walk around the lake, and the 1 K kid’s walk/run in which all kids receive a t-shirt, medal and are timed using a time chip. It’s a great incentive to get moving while at the same time improving the community’s amenities.
This year’s event will coincide with the Fall Fair. The race starts off in the morning from the Rec Center with the top place runners receiving medals. Last year’s events attracted 121 participants with the numbers growing each year. The Loop Around the Lake is attracting attention from runners beyond Chestermere’s borders and Maillet was recently contacted by a wheelchair athlete to see if the race could accommodate the special chairs that are needed by such athletes to participate. Other road races are having a hard time accommodating the racers for safety reasons and are having to eliminate their participation. Maillet is working out the logistics to try to include these athletes.
There appears to be no doubt that the success of the Loop Around the Lake will continue with such dedication and drive from Maillet. It is his hope that more Chestermere residents will step up to the challenge and see the results of their efforts through the growth of the library. More information can be found at www.looparoundthelake.ca
