Getting Moving Again

Life in the Brownsberger household is so busy. A few months ago, Ron celebrated his seventieth but there is so much going on. Both of us are heavily involved in theatre ( go to www.markhamlittletheatre.ca ) and on planning committees at the church ( go to www.springvale.org ) and Margaret frequently takes a turn at taking grandkids out for a day of activity. We are planning on resuming the Great Walk Around Lake Ontario by following Highway #2 east from the Pickering Ajax area where we left off last year.

Still Walking

Last fall we walked from Brighton, Ontario, to just beyond the village of Wellington in Prince Edward County. This spring we did the section from Kew Beach in Toronto along Highway 2 through Scarborough and into Pickering. Our plan is to walk around all of Lake Ontario (Ontario and New York State) in the next year or so in small bits. We'll keep you posted from time to time.

What a Trip !

At the end of March, 2009, Ron Brownsberger with his wife Margaret set out to walk from southern Pennsylvania to Stouffville, Ontario, north east ot Toronto.

By doing the 443 mile walk, which took from March 30 to June 11th, 2009, Ron was able to raise almost $6000 for the Heart Centre at Sunnybrook Hospital.

Scroll down to March 15 to read the start of the story of this adventure . . and for those who like an armchair travellogue, there are over sixty pages of notes and photos from the trip for you to enjoy.

In late September and early October, '09, we intend to do a ten-day walk from Brighton, Ontario, through Wellington, Bloomfield, Picton, Bath and on to Kingston. - - Just for the fun of it; not a charity walk. AND, we plan, over the next year or so, to complete a walk around all of Lake Ontario.

Fund Update from Sunnybrook

Just heard that the total donations from you folks has risen to $5653.

Thank-you to all doners. Way to go! It won't provide an artificial heart pump, but it will help to supply a guzillion clamps or whatever is needed by the Heart Centre.

Ron Brownsberger

What's normal?

So, we're slowly getting back to normal, (whatever that is!) It's good to be back to our home town of Stouffville. Last night, we were with thousands who came out to see the Canada Day fireworks show at 9:45 in Memorial Park. It nice to know that this town is still small enough that many are within a half hour walk to downtown. And earlier in the evening we heard the excellent Blackboard Blues Band hammering out dozens of songs. The five-day Strawberry Festival started with a great concert the previous evening with the Men of Note chorus and recently honoured and amazing soloist, tenor Lloyd Knight.

Margaret is daily tending her perennial garden. We both do Thursdays with the grand kids. We've been on duty at the Snack Shack at Springvale this week. I'm back with the two bands I play keyboard or piano in. The MLT theatre club is gearing up for the next season with "Seven Stories" in September. Margaret is starting with her reading for the book club, and will also be helping to lead a group this fall at TLC at Springvale. And I have to start staining pine for the bookcases for the den.

We'll likely wrap up the Sunnybrook heart fund in a few weeks. For those of you waiting for one more pay-cheque before donating, there is still time. Go to http://www.sunnybrookfoundation.com/ click Trail.

Now, what do we do to this blog? Does it stay in the www forever for the world to see? What earth-shattering message would we want to send to those nice people in Australia? Were Bob Gass and Lorraine Gass reading it? Was Howard Corfield reading it? Al Arnott? We know that a few in Pennsylvania and Indiana were following, as were many here in Ontario. Some have said it was tricky to add a "comment" on the blog. I know that ron.brownsberger@gmail.com is still working.

Photos - - In Margaret's garden.

Winding Down a Bit

It's been over a week since we completed the walk. I'm still sort of amazed that it happened. But I'm sure it did. How else would I have gotten those 900 or more pictures on my camera, all taken at road level!

People ask about the shoes. I had three pairs - - a cheap pair of "Starter" running shoes from WalMart and two pairs of low cost Adidas from SportChek. I changed pairs each day at mid-day. By the time the 1.2 million or so steps were over, the wear on each pair was similar. And slight. They're all ready for another long hike.

And people ask about the feet. Very lucky there too. One small blister one afternoon, treated with salt water, gone in a day. Margaret was good about giving the feet a good creaming job once or twice a day. And I had 28 pairs of socks with us in the van. There were frequent changes especially on wet days. And I'm a regular at Stouffville Family Footcare. They do miracles.

People ask what I was thinking about while walking. After I got it straight in my little brain that this walking trip was actually underway, I would often see or hear something that would trigger a memory. For example, a miniature lighthouse on a front lawn - - times in Peggy's Cove, or Newfoundland, or on the Toronto Islands or up the road from Port Huron where I've seen a variety of lighthouses. Or an Adirondack chair for sale in someone's driveway - - would make me think for the dozens of chairs I repaired one summer at MBC in Huntsville. Or the sound of a bird - - memories of my mother's great interest in birds and how she taught me how to recognize many of them by their calls.

And we're asked about the fund-raising. Well, there's almost $5000 additional at Sunnybrook ready to help someone with their heart problems. (Not too late to donate!)

http://www.sunnybrookfoundation.ca/ click Events, click Trail, . . . .

Photo - - The Boardwalk, East Toronto

Boston Pizza, Stouffville, Monday Night

It was great for us to see about a hundred customers at the restaurant tonight - - and more than half of them were people we knew, too! Community-minded Boston Pizza donated a part of their profits tonight to the Trail of the Susquehanna Walk - Schulich Heart Centre fund at Sunnybrook.

A few had wondered about the menu. And one couple was concerned about how loud the canned music was going to be. The place has a good selection of "heart smart" items on the menu. And conversation was easy with the music at a could-barely-hear level.

And we were happy to accept a dozen donation envelopes for the Schulich Heart Centre, too.

Thank you to everyone who came. From Ron and Margaret.