A local teenager is walking from Arnprior to Petawawa to raise money and awareness for juvenile diabetes research.
Ruby Pilatzke was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was 9-years-old.
She says due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual walk to cure diabetes was transformed into 100 Your Way.
Pilatzke says for the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin she will walk 100 kilometers in one shot.
She plans to leave Arnprior on Friday, August 6th, 2021 and will walk 20-hours along the backroads before making it to the Civic Centre in Petawawa.
Ruby has raised over $10,000 with this event, but adds she won’t stop until a cure is found.
Ruby says should a cure for diabetes be found, she wants to be able to say she was part of the solution.
She encourages everyone to donate and help spread the word as every little bit helps.
The teenager from Petawawa was recently a recipient of the Terry Fox Humanitarian Award for her work with juvenile diabetes.
As a youth ambassador, Ruby has raised over $25,000 for diabetes research, advocating in her own community through bottle drives, bake sales, direct canvassing, and most recently, virtual events during lockdown.
Ruby also supports the Candlelighter’s Childhood Cancer Support Program, and is co-president of the student athletic council at her school.
In the fall she will be attending Nipissing University with hopes of graduating in education and becoming a high school math or science teacher.
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