Londoners are climbing for a good cause on Thursday as the TD Stair Climb in support of the United Way returns in person for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Participants are making the climb at Budweiser Gardens from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., a change from previous years when the climb was held at One London Place. Earlier in the pandemic, climbers took part from their own homes.
“We know the stairwell at One London Place is a little cramped from a social distancing point of view, so we started looking around at our community and thought, what can we do to make this TD Stair Climb a success? And Budweiser Gardens was our natural fit,” Kelly Ziegner, president and CEO of the United Way Elgin Middlesex, told Global News last month.
“Climbers … they’ll be doing sort of ‘Rocky-style‘ all around the stadium, up and down, up and down, throughout the stands. What is great about that is everyone’s really together in one room to capture all that excitement of being reunited again.”
Ziegner says this year’s event comes at a time of significant need in the community, citing ongoing issues surrounding homelessness, mental health and addictions, and poverty in the city.
“Folks may think, ‘OK, yeah, but what does my participation do? Like, how can I really make a difference?'” she said.
“If you raise just over 50 bucks, that provides two weeks’ worth of meals for a senior living in poverty through Meals on Wheels London. If you are able to raise $365, which is the equivalent of a dollar-a-day donation, that provides tenant insurance to someone who’s trying to escape homelessness.
“Something as simple as tenant insurance can be the barrier for someone trying to escape homelessness. So raising $365 can make a difference there. And if you raise over $1,000, you can provide 35 hours of intensive case management for a young woman trying to escape homelessness.”
According to the United Way Elgin Middlesex, the annual stair climb has raised more than $2.8 million in pledges and donations since it was first held in 1996.
Londoners can register and donate online.
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