Running Toward Hope

Dominic’s family vacation came to a halt when his cold and flu symptoms turned out to be more serious. After doing bloodwork, six-year-old Dominic was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL).

“Our family spiraled,” says Dominic’s dad, André. “Everything else in our lives came second. It truly felt like the carpet was being pulled from under us. It’s a nightmare that became our life. One moment we are enjoying our vacation and the next we were dealing with cancer.”

Through the Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre, Dominic and his family were introduced to Campfire Circle, a relationship that grew during further treatment at at SickKids in Toronto. Since their time in hospital, they have attended three Weekends at Camp in Muskoka together as a family and found each experience to be refreshing.

“The energy is something we need. At camp, we are not singled out or treated differently because of Dominic’s cancer, the focus shifts to knowing who you are as a person rather than the diagnosis.”

More reserved and introverted, Dominic surprised his family when he started playing and creating new friendships at camp. Meanwhile, Dominic’s sibling, Maxime, is outgoing and loves making new friends. Camp brought out new sides of them, and being able to share that experience together in a safe environment has benefitted both children.

On December 20, 2024, Dominic was able to ring the bell marking the end of his treatment. But for two and a half years, to cope with long days, André began running outside the hospital to manage the stress of a drastic life change.

“Running helped me immensely, and I haven’t been able to find anything else that quite makes me feel as good as I do after a run. It’s truly medicine. I thought, how can I keep doing this? And I decided to start a run club in my local community.”

The run club, Midland Run Rebellion, now has over 120 members. This May, they are running the Sporting Life 10K virtually for the second time to support the benefits that camp has given to Dominic and his family.

With treatment behind him, Dominic cannot wait to go to overnight camp in Muskoka with new friends and create new memories.