Local residents Mike and Cara Weger, along with friends Tina Clay and Kim Maloney, participated in a fundraiser challenge on Saturday arranged with CharityChallenge.ca,which had their group participating in a hike to Machu Picchu in Peru to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis Canada.
Mike and Cara have been raising money for Cystic Fibrosis Canada since their 14-year-old daughter Teresa was diagnosed with CF at the age of two and a half. Since then their family has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for CF research and care.
For the past 10 years, at this time of the year, the Wegers have been organizing their annual Night Out For CF Fundraiser which has been a very successful local fundraising event. This year the couple has decided to not do their annual fundraiser, instead they are taking their fundraising to new heights as they participate in a seven-day hiking challenge in Peru which will take their group to one of the new seven Wonders of the World, Machu Picchu.
This is not a vacation, but it will be an adventure. The group will travel 7,654 km by air to reach their meeting point. From there, the group will travel by bus and train and also hike over 30 km at altitudes reaching up to 4,400 metres.
During the hike, the trekkers will tent in pairs on the side of a mountain for three of the nights with temperatures possibly dipping below 0 C.
“I have said before that our desire to raise money for CF research has made us do some crazy things, and this will be one of them,” said Mike. “Our goal is to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis Canada just like we do every May. The goal set for each participant in the Trek to Machu Picchu is $4,200, but we don’t want to stop at that amount.”
As of Friday, the four-person group raised a combined $18,522. To help their fundraising, Clay and Maloney arranged two separate Beer and Yoga events and a Plant Nite fundraiser. The four-person group also arranged a Tenille Arts performance and raffle basket in December.
In addition to the Machu Picchu fundraising, Team Teresa also completed a major butter tart fundraiser in December and has raised over $19,000, which was donated at the Walk To Make Cystic Fibrosis History which took place on Sunday in Regina.
The group hopes to overachieve and keep Weyburn in the spotlight as a Cystic Fibrosis fundraising hotspot. To help the group of four continue raising donations, please visit the links to their online fundraising pages or contact the individuals via Facebook where they each look forward to keeping everyone updated on their adventure. Cash and cheques will also be accepted for drop off at NSWB Law Firm.
The group expressed their sincere thanks to Weyburn and surrounding area for the continued support in their journey to fundraise for a cure or control for Cystic Fibrosis.
The following are the fundraising pages for each of the four participants:
Cara Weger:
Tina Clay:
Kim Maloney:
