Tara Jeffrey
A little boy whose battle with cancer touched an entire community will be celebrated at the second annual Superhero Walk named in his honour.
Lucien Nadeau, who was just six when he passed away on April 9, left behind a broken-hearted family, but not before making the world a little brighter while he was here.
Vibrant colours, superheroes, paper airplanes and lavender are just some of the things he loved and shared, despite the brain tumour he fought bravely for 16 months.
“When that day happened, it was devastating for his family and friends,” said Nadine Daye, family member and organizer of last year’s inaugural Conquer Cancer Brain Tumor Walk.
She’s been working tirelessly to host it again in June, and hopefully, for years to come.
“No matter what happened, this was always going to be an annual thing,”
This year’s event on June 3 will be held at Temple Baptist Church in Sarnia, and again invites families to throw on a cape and participate in a slew of activities, all in the name of brain cancer research.
Last year’s event raised $22,000, which was matched dollar-for-dollar by the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada, for an ongoing, crucial brain cancer impact grant, the most extensive research project in 35 years.
More children die each year from brain tumours than any other cancer.
“We actually had a little girl decide she wanted to use her birthday money to support the walk; it was so sweet,” said Daye, noting 10-year-old Ella Bowen’s donation will actually be used to sponsor the event’s face-painting station.
Other highlights include paper-airplane making, superhero photo booth, martial arts, pizza, prize draws, and some special guests.
“Lucien loved the smell of lavender, so we’ll be giving out lavender seeds, and signs for people to mark where it’s planted,” said Daye, who is hoping the event can bring some relief for Lucien’s parents Stephan and Jessica Nadeau and the rest of the family.
“He’s our little superhero,” she said. “And fought the battle of a lifetime.”
IF YOU GO:
WHAT: Conquer Cancer Superhero Walk
WHEN: Sunday, June 3 at 2:30 p.m.
WHERE: Temple Baptist Church, 1410 Quinn Dr., Sarnia
DETAILS: For more info, including pledge sheets, email [email protected] and visit Luv 4 Lucien Superhero Walk on Facebook