Don Valley Trail Trek

We are less than 2 months away from our climb!  As the date approaches we have been diligently training every weekend to prepare for the big day.  This past weekend we lucked out with sunny skies but had to deal with freezing temperatures.  Unfortunately Chrissy was ill; but Alice, Mary Catherine and I started out early in the morning and headed off for a day along the Don Valley Trail.  We walked through the city for a while and then entered the route just off of Bayview.  I ended up leading the girls astray and we went “off trailing” down a hill!  It was a close call; aside from a bit of sliding and one of us getting stuck in a tree we made it onto the main trail.   Thank goodness we will have a guide to keep us on track in Tanzania (lol).  The view along the trail was great; there were many other hikers, cross country skiers and people snow shoeing.  After 14 km we decided to end hour hike up at Don Mills and Eglinton.  Overall a very productive day of training!

The Climbing Team

The Toronto Twilight Rotary Club Climbing Team:

The Toronto Twilight Rotary Club (TTRC) is one of the newest clubs in Toronto, Canada. Formed in 2009, it has been a very active group in the Toronto community, and was officially chartered on February 18, 2010. 

Alice Maliakkal is a Charter Member (past Service Director) and is currently the President-Elect of the TTRC. She works as an Environmental Engineer at Conestoga-Rovers & Associates in the area of water and wastewater treatment. Alice enjoys getting involved with community and international service projects and is excited to challenge herself with this climb and help support Rotary’s goal to eradicate polio in the world.

Christine Phelan is the Charter President and is currently the Membership Director of the TTRC. She
is also a District 7070 RYLA Program Co-ordinator and a third generation Rotarian. She works as a Branch Manager for the Bank of Montreal. Christine is excited (and slightly terrified) to be climbing Kilimanjaro.

Holly Weber is the Charter Vice-President and is currently the President of the TTRC. She works as a Technical Recruiter at Procom and has been in the recruitment industry for almost 7 years. An avid adventure traveler, she has previously climbed Machu Picchu and is excited to embark on this challenging
trek.

Mary-Catherine Lill is a new member and is currently the Foundation Director of the TTRC. She works as a Litigation Lawyer at Gilbertson Davis Emerson, a firm which specializes in insurance defence. She looks forward to not only sharing this adventure with her good friends and fellow Rotarians but to the opportunity to raise funds and awareness for the End Polio Now campaign.

We appreciate your support in helping us achieve a polio-free world.  

TTRC Climbs Kili

On Tuesday March 15th, four members of the Toronto Twilight Rotary Club (TTRC) will begin their five day climb of Mt. Kilimanjaro as a fundraiser for End Polio Now— Rotary’s $200 million challenge to eradicate polio.

Mt. Kilimanjaro is the highest point in Africa and the highest freestanding mountain in the world at 19,340 ft above sea level. The climb will take the team through 105km of challenging terrain including forests, moorland and desert. As the climbing team expects to reach summit on March 19th, the TTRC will be walking 105km as a club on that day.

If polio isn’t eradicated, the world will continue to live under the threat of the disease. More than 10 million children will be paralyzed in the next 40 years if the world fails to eradicate polio. One of the challenges of eradicating polio is halting the spread of the poliovirus in the four remaining endemic countries (Afghanistan, India, Nigeria, and Pakistan), which continue to export it to polio-free areas.

All proceeds from TTRC’s fundraiser will go to Rotary’s End Polio Now campaign. The contributions will help Rotary raise $200 million to match $355 million in challenge grants received from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The resulting $555 million will directly support immunization campaigns in developing countries, where polio continues to infect and paralyze children.

Tax receipts will be issued from The Rotary Foundation (Canada) for all donations over $20).  To make a donation by cheque, please mail to: 28 Bonacres Ave. Toronto ON M1C 1P7. Please make cheques payable to "The Rotary Foundation (Canada)". We appreciate your support in helping us achieve a polio-free world!

Rotary is a worldwide organization of more than 1.2 million business, professional, and community leaders. Members of Rotary clubs, known as Rotarians, provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.

The Toronto Twilight Rotary Club is one of the newest clubs in Toronto, Canada.   Formed in 2009, it has been a very active group in the Toronto community, and was officially chartered on February 18, 2010.