Garry Hans, brother of Tiger Ali Singh

Kopz 4 Kidz fundraiser at mall Saturday

News
Burlington Post, Oct 29, 2008

Large Medium Small Print This Article Tell a friend Garry Hans has taken two of his children to hospitals for care and knows very well the stress that’s involved.
The experiences prompted the Halton Regional Police officer to suggest raising funds for fun stuff like game units, televisions, videos and games to reduce the anxiety of children and their families in hospital waiting rooms.

The first such fundraiser will be held this Saturday (Nov. 1), when a stationary bike-a-thon will be held inside Burlington Mall, near the eastern entrance to Zellers. It will run from 10 a. m.-6 p. m.

Hans said there has been a strong response to the event.

“When I explained the idea, I didn’t have to explain it twice, everyone jumped on it,” he said. “I know we could’ve done more, but we had to cut it off at 25-30 teams.”

Participants collect pledges and their bikes are sponsored by local businesses. Passersby can also make pledges on bike-athon day.

A few participants will be doing the event alone, while others will form teams of up to 50 people.

“As long as the bike is moving for eight hours,” said Hans. “Some people may come in football equipment, while some may be in hockey gear.”

It’s the first event for a new Halton police umbrella group entitled Kopz 4 Kidz, which helps events supporting local youth.

Two contrasting hospital experiences sparked Hans’ idea.

It started when his son Sunju contracted a rare form of leukemia. The boy, who’s now 8, recovered, but spent months at Toronto’s Hospital For Sick Children.

Hans recalled many appointments and clinic visits, where he experienced firsthand the stress of waiting and watching the reactions of other parents and children.

“I pretty much lived in SickKids, but it was like Walt Disney,” he said. “They had a lot for kids entertainment-wise in every clinic, with games and TV.”

Sunju recovered after receiving a transplant of bone marrow from his brother Emahn. The parents had kept stem cells from their three children shortly after their births. Hans said there was no specific reason for doing so, but it was lucky that they had.

Shortly after that hospital experience, Emahn hurt his elbow and went to the emergency department at a local hospital.

While it proved to be a minor injury, the boy’s father again noticed the stress of parents and children there.

“I thought, why not have a games station and make it more enjoyable so parents can deal with the stress of waiting. It would help both the parents and the kids,” he said.

“When you come back to the community and see what you don’t have as a hospital it opens your eyes.”

Hans said Halton police and Chief Gary Crowell were instrumental in making the upcoming event a reality.

“This was huge for me to do on my own, but a huge number of people wanted to be involved,” he said.

Hans said teams from the police department, high schools across the region and all four Halton hospitals will be among those participating.

He said proceeds will be distributed to Halton Healthcare Services.

Supt. Joe Taylor said Kids 4 Kids will attempt to tie together police support of events for youths.

“We’ve been doing this before without the name, doing partnerships for charitable events,” he said. “This is a very worthwhile event and it’s another demonstration of the partnerships we have with the community.”

Taylor said the Toys for Tots program will also be coming under the Kids 4 Kids umbrella.

Through the annual Christmas season partnership, police work with Canadian Tire and the Salvation Army to help provide gifts for children. Source: http://www.burlingtonpost.com/news/article/215863