Almost 10 years after running a halfmarathon and raising thousands of dollars for leukemia research in memory of her daughter, Marian Lowery is at it again.
This time the former New Westminster resident, 62, is aiming to climb the highest mountain in Africa and pull in more than $10,000 in the 2011 Ascent for Alzheimer's, run by the Alzheimer Society of B.C.
"Every year they've mounted either one or two teams and the teams get together and train all summer. In September, we'll be summiting Mount Kilimanjaro," Lowery said after joining the 2011 team.
Lowery said she is inspired to keep herself fit and raise money for good causes as an outlet for the pain and upset that comes from seeing the illnesses in her own family.
"It's the idea that you're going to com-bine your personal fitness goals with something that contributes to society in general. In this case it's the Alzheimer Society," she said. "My mother died of Alzheimer's three years ago. It seemed like a good combination."
Lowery said she is aware of tremendous research being done for degenerative neurological diseases like Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, but, "that research costs money."
By July, Lowery's team raised just short of $85,000, and she had exceeded her own goal, bringing in $11,240.
"One of the things you can do is just wait for governments to fund research. That's not a very empowering way to approach one's life. I think a better approach is to get involved and help the process happen," she said.
To follow Lowery's team and to donate to the cause, visit www.ascentbc.ca.
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