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We are incredibly proud of our Kidney March Family. Every conversation, every tweet, every facebook status, every newspaper feature and every shout out has helped spread the word about Kidney March far and wide, and for that, we are beyond grateful. We welcome you with open arms to be as Kidney March connected as possible. There is an amazing community with a strong voice out there and you can find it all here. Read our blog below for our News and Community updates and stay connected.

Want to get to know a few of your fellow Marchers? Visit our 'Marcher Stories' page under 'The Cause' to read more!

Kidney March in the News! To read and watch past news storries on our event and participants visit our 'Media' page.

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You’re Invited to the 2023 Richardson Wealth Kidney March Celebration and Alumni Reunion!


It’s Time to Celebrate Join us for the Kidney March Celebration and Alumni Reunion on Saturday, October 21, 2023! 

  • We’re excited to celebrate your accomplishments and everyone who has made Kidney March what it is today. We have a lot to be proud of and much to celebrate as we lead into our 15th year! Everyone is invited, all past and present Marchers and Crew, volunteers, donors, sponsors, friends and families, you are our Kidney March family and the kidney community!

    Hear special messages from your fellow Kidney Marchers, enter for awesome door prizes, see who won the top fundraising awards for 2023, be the first to see our 2023 video, plus many more surprises!

 

Now is the time to be a Trailblazer! What is a Trailblazer?
Trailblazers are bold and committed. They take the first steps in the fight against kidney disease and for organ donation by registering before Dec 1, 2023 and pledging to raise $2200 for the 2024 Kidney March. All Trailblazers will receive a special gift in recognition of their commitment and you wont want to miss it! 2024 is going to be a big year so save your spot and encourage your team to sign up early. 
Register at: https://kidneymarch.ca/

Lost and Found 2023

Lost and found from Kidney March 2023
Please check the below list of items and let us know if you think something may be yours. To claim your lost item contact Sharon D’Souza
sharon.dsouza@kidney.ca 1-587-200-2780  | 1-800-268-1177

We will bring all unclaimed items to the Alumni Reunion in October.  Any remaining items following the reunion will be donated to Kidney Clothes.

Items that are missing and not yet found:
1) Beets Pill Speaker left in Van #21 potentially

2) Black Yeti water bottle

3) Power Bank portable charger white, it was plugged into multi port charging block with a short grey cord.

4) Round speaker UE(ultimate ears) Dark grey with an orange small label.

Unclaimed found items:

Description

White Bag with Blue towel and other items

Sleeping bag, blue Okark Trail sleeping bag with grey cover

Shirley – glasses pouch with clothes

Purple hairband with cat ears and red item

Yardworks Gloves- Grey

Duck Blanket

Size 10 Sandals – George brand

P9- Small white bag with personal belongings

Blue thermos with blue and yellow shirt

Black and White Towel

Geo K – white bag with KM clothing

Yellow Eye Mask

Brown Sunglasses

Blue wet sweater

Good vibes blue waterbottle, pink watch phone cable, KM Tuber, Socks

Green Sweater

Caunie SP – white bag Personal belongings

KM Jacket

KM Grey Long Sleeve Shirt

Orange Advantage Builders Drinkware

Blue walmart bottle

Grey sweat pants

White Hand Towel

Cartoon Girl Towel

Olay Body wash 89ml

Blue/purple Thermoflask

Flash light

Blue sheet

White Sheet

Soft Kneebrace

Purple bubble maker stick

White work gloves – grey spots

White sheet

Hot Paws gloves

Boys XL black pants

black touque

Grey slacks

Nikon camera lense cover

2023 Closing Ceremony

 The Closing Ceremony:  Sunday, September 10, at 3:00 pm
Join us for  3:00 pm to cheer on the parade of Marchers and Crew as they complete their final kilometres and walk into the Closing Ceremony at Winsport Canada Olympic Park’s Festival Tent.  *No Pets
Where: COP Festival Tent: 88 Canada Olympic Rd SW, Calgary AB. (See map below for parking)

 A Special Thanks to our Closing Ceremony Sponsor, The Lecky Foundation.

 

Where Can My Supporters Cheer For Me During Kidney March?

2023  Cheering Stations & Ceremonies

The experience of a lifetime and maybe the biggest challenge you’ve ever undertaken deserves a lot of celebration! 

During Kidney March, safety is our top priority.  Support is also very important to us, so we want to make sure your family and friends have opportunities to cheer you on!  There are specific locations each day where friends and family can safely park and greet you:

Day One

  • 7:00 am sharp, Opening Ceremony at Millarville Racing & Agricultural Society, Millarville Racetrack: 306097 192 Street, Millarville, AB T0L 1K0 
  • 9:30 am – 1:00 pm, Diamond Valley lunch stop,  Royalite Millennium Park: approximately 105 Valley Trail NE, Turner Valley, AB T0L 2A0

Day Two

Day Three 

  • 9:00 am – 11:00 am, Calgary lunch stop, at Peace Park: 8 St SW & 2 Ave SW, Calgary AB
  • 3:00 pm, Marchers and Crew complete their final kilometres and walk into the Closing Ceremony at WinSport Canada Olympic Park, in the Festival Tent, 88 Canada Olympic Rd SW, Calgary AB 
    **bottom of the hill only** 

Please use the designated cheering stations only.
For safety reasons, we cannot allow spontaneous stops along the route or have family and friends joining the walk. Family and friends are encouraged to find their Marchers and Crew only at the cheering stations listed.
**Guests or visitors are not permitted at Kidney March Camp**

 

Meet the Marcher – Mike Kostashuk

Kidney Marcher Embarks on Unique Journey Amidst Ancient Wonders

Mike Kostashuk hails from Calgary but has spent most of his adult life working internationally. This year, work has taken him to the heart of Cairo, Egypt. He will be trading in the the peaks of the Rocky Mountains for those of the Pyramids. He’ll be marching in and around some of the iconic sights of Egypt as Captain of Team “Walk Like an Egyptian”. 

Mike has been rigorously training alongside friend, colleague, and world-record-holding ultra-endurance athlete Chris Gaskin. Chris will also be a member of his Kidney March team for 2023. To cope with the scorching 42°C desert temperatures, Mike and Chris have adopted a unique training approach. They complete around 20 km in the mornings outside while it is cool then take on about 10km midday on elliptical and treadmill machines at a local fitness center.

The goal? To be ready to cover as much of their 100 kilometres as possible on Saturday and wrap up the remaining kilometers on Sunday. (See his full plan below)

Mike wanted to do Kidney March for many years, but never made the leap until last year, but after doing it for the first time he remarks, “I should have done it a long time ago. I’m hooked. Three days of great conversations with people. It puts our life in context – if you are healthy and can maintain your health you really need to appreciate it and give back.”

Charity and giving run in Mike’s blood, stemming from his upbringing with a mother who was actively involved in philanthropic endeavors. Mike doesn’t suffer from kidney disease himself, but has witnessed its impact on others. A colleague had been complaining of pain and thought it was due to too much travel only to discover it was kidney cancer. Thankfully it was found and removed. This experience highlighted the silent and often surprising nature of a kidney disease diagnosis for Mike. Kidney disease is often not something you think of happening until it happens to someone close to you. Additionally, kidney stones have significantly affected members of his family, further fueling his passion to support kidney research and positive interventions. 

For Mike, Kidney March is more than just a charity walk—it’s an opportunity to make a meaningful impact and bring the global community together to help others and fight kidney disease.

With the end goal in mind, Mike reflects on the journey’s challenges and the ultimate sense of accomplishment that awaits him. His journey encompasses not just physical distance, but the camaraderie and shared purpose that Kidney March fosters. “Kidney March is beneficial worldwide and it’s helping a lot of people. It doesn’t matter where we are our objectives are the same and we are doing this with the end goal in mind. When facing challenging hills and more on the route – you might wonder is it worth it? And at the end of day everyone knows it is. Our goal is not the just the physical distance but the whole Kidney March event and the sense of accomplishment after you walk under that 100-kilometre finish sign.”

He’s going to miss getting to know everyone and hearing their stories the most this year. As he embarks on this exceptional Kidney March experience, Mike plans to document his journey and the unique challenges he’ll face in Cairo. Although he will be nine hours ahead, he wants to make sure his Kidney March Community can connect with him from afar.  You can follow his journey and show your support by cheering for him on his Instagram account @mgkostashuk.

This weekend (August 19th and 20th) will be a challenge he’s looked forward to for over a month. On  Saturday they are heading to the Saqqara necropolis for a 20km session and they will be trying to fit the Red Pyramid of Dahshur, the White Pyramid of Amenemhat II, and the Black Pyramid of Amenemhat III, to round out the colours of Kidney March 2023. Check on his Instagram for photos to follow.

Here’s their plan for their Kidney March weekend which he hopes to complete in two days:

DAY 1 – The Morning will take them through the Wadi Degla (valley in Arabic) and back on the north plateau – It’s a natural parkland formed by the ever-expanding wadi (stream/river valley) stretching from eastern Cairo all the way to the Red Sea. For a rough comparison, imagine Fish Creek Park totally barren of trees, water, grasses, and large wildlife. At the turn around his wife (Peggy) will hopefully be there with refreshments.  After a lunch break, they’ll head to a local gym for a much cooler 10-12km treadmill/elliptical session and then rest up for an evening 8-10km walk on the Cairo corniche (Nile shoreline).
DAY 2 –He plans to “wave the flag” at the Djoser pyramid at the Saqqara necropolis in the southwest corner of Cairo.


Mike’s Two Training Tip Takeaways:
• Try different combinations of gear while you’re training. Throughout his training, he found the gear the that worked the best for him, surprisingly it was a different pair of shoes that suited his feet and marina wool socks. He encourages the marchers to try different combinations, because what works for you might be different from others or from what you thought would work. “Bringing winter wool ski socks to Cairo sounds crazy, but I have had no issues with them even in the heat.”  Through the training process you can tackle all those gear issues and avoid irritation early on.
• The other big thing is stretching. Get into a routine. He does eight minutes of basic stretching exercises in the morning to prepare and of the day to relax. It’s a big help.

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22 hours ago

Kidney March
👣 Why We March... Meet Marcher Jess Sanders Kidney March is more than a fundraiser. It is a movement. It gathers people together. You have heard us say "Kidney March Family" before. The connections made throughout Kidney March weekend go deep. We learn each other's stories, share experiences, laugh, cry, and find strength from within to keep going. We invite you to make the commitment and join us for Kidney March 2024. Together, we can make a positive change. Register at kidneymarch.ca ... See MoreSee Less
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1 day ago

Kidney March
HAP-PEE Holidays starts today! Get your tickets NOW. Check out The Kidney Foundation of Canada, Southern Alberta Branch's events page for details! ow.ly/S52u50Qefg6Have fun while supporting our #kidney and #transplant community in #Alberta! Start dreaming about your best holiday ever... ... See MoreSee Less
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2 days ago

Kidney March
It's time! Dec 1-8 only! Check out The Kidney Foundation of Canada, Southern Alberta Branch's events page for details! ow.ly/S52u50Qefg6Have fun while supporting our #kidney and #transplant community in #Alberta! Then start dreaming about your best holiday ever... ... See MoreSee Less
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2 days ago

Kidney March
This is it; tomorrow is the last day to register for Kidney March 2024 as a Trailblazer and to secure your spot. Trailblazers are a core group of Marchers and Crew that lead the way and are among the first to step up and say "YES" to Kidney March.Who will you March for? Register now at kidneymarch.ca ... See MoreSee Less
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5 days ago

Kidney March
Only a few days remain to secure your spot as a Trailblazer for Kidney March 2024! The Trailblazer deadline is Friday, December 1st. Don't miss out on the exclusive early registration Trailblazer gift!Register now at kidneymarch.ca and invite your friends and family to join you!Kidney March is a movement. No other walk in the world goes this far, for this long, for this cause. Kidney March is helping to change the future of kidney disease and organ donation by funding ground-breaking research and improving the lives of people in our kidney community every day.100KM • September 6-8, 2024 • #kidneyMarchfor #kidneydisease and #OrganDonation ... See MoreSee Less
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1 week ago

Kidney March
Kidney March 2024 is gearing up to be a record-breaking year. We are excited to share that we have 145 Trailblazers who have committed to join us in 2024. Help us set a new record of hosting 200 Trailblazers! Register for Kidney March before December 1, 2023 and secure your spot! www.kidneymarch.ca Are you a trailblazer? 🖐️ ... See MoreSee Less
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2 weeks ago

Kidney March
If you are an adult (>18) living in Alberta with early-stage kidney disease and other health conditions, or care for someone who does, there is a Canadian research study we wanted to share. The University of Calgary and the University of Alberta are exploring how coordinated and accessible health care is for people with kidney disease. If you would like to participate in this study, we have included the link here: survey.essenburgh.com/zs/JtBj9q ... See MoreSee Less
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2 weeks ago

Kidney March
🎅💰 Don't let this holiday season pass you by without your chance to win! The Kidney Foundation of Canada, Southern Alberta Branch's #Cash4theholidays is coming up on December 1st! SAVE THE DATE or be the first one notified when tickets are live by visiting, kidney.us16.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=8168733eb306aec0b63a3ee2e&id=7e34e014bdSpread the Joy: Cash4TheHolidays is not just about winning big; it's about giving back BIG too! Your ticket purchase supports local programs and services, making a positive impact on those in our kidney community who need it most.Did you know? If you live in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, or Nova Scotia you can play too! ... See MoreSee Less
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2 weeks ago

Kidney March
Tim Hortons holiday Smile Cookies are happening all week, and today, there’s a special crew of decorators volunteering from The Kidney Foundation of Canada in Lethbridge. Proceeds from cookie sales at the Lethbridge locations will be shared between the Tim Hortons Foundation and Green Shirt Day in honour of Logan Boulet. Pick up a cookie today and help support organ donation awareness and initiatives. Use this cookie as an opportunity to spread the word about the importance of registering to be an organ donor and talking to your family about your wishes. #beinspired #greenshirtday #organdonation #giftoflife ... See MoreSee Less
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