A Charitble Venture

The crew of NOTC Venture rides the Big Bike for charity.

At 39 years old the last thing I ever thought my spouse Blaise and I would face was the news that he needed open heart surgery in order to replace his mitral valve.

Leading up to the day we were told of his condition, life seemed fairly normal. The kids had gone back to school and Blaise started to experience some flu-like symptoms. He just thought they had brought home the latest virus and he was the next victim. This went on for a few days and through some coaxing I finally talked him into going to the hospital to get checked out.

Less than 24 hours later he was told he had endocarditis, which, as was explained to us, is inflammation of the inside lining of the heart chambers and heart valves.

Two weeks in the Jubilee Hospital, and six weeks of home antibiotic therapy later the impact of the endocarditis and infection was known and surgery was scheduled.  

The support of the amazing doctors involved and the information that was made available to us from the Heart and Stroke Foundation truly got us through this period of our lives, and Blaise is doing great.

Fast forward to a few months ago when the advertisement for this year’s Heart and Stroke – Big Bike Challenge caught my eye. Who couldn’t have fun with 29 people on a bike, riding through downtown Victoria. With promotional package in hand I approached our Executive Officer, LCdr Ryan Klassen who agreed without hesitation to become the Team Leader. His brilliant mind at work, the team name “BLogged Arteries” was conceived. This was our first year in this event and the team raised $1,763.10 for this very worthwhile cause.

Thank you Base Logistics you continue to make a difference in your community.

Team Riders: Ryan Klassen, Cynthia Smith, Mallory McDonald, Dale Smith, Anne-Catherine Kozlowski, Sue Issel, Will Slater, Rick Taylor, Lori McAllister, Lee Riglin-McAllister, Lee Riglin, Rob Mason, John Vincer, Anita Blais, Mathilde Belanger, Leigh Garrod, Marie Amoto, Quinton Mimura, Dave Ireland, Jan McKee, Dani Heroux, and Elaine Jones.

Suzan Issel, Contributor