Running for research
Concordia master’s student Mendy Wenger will take part in the 2011 BMO Vancouver Marathon for a special reason.
When he runs the 42-kilometre race on May 1, he’ll be raising funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada in memory of his father, Rabbi Eliezer Wenger, who lost his battle to cancer one year ago this month.
He has set himself the goal of raising $5,000 and is well on his way. Through family, friends and colleagues, he has already raised over $3,000.
“I want to make it more than just a physical feat,” says Wenger of his first full marathon. “For me, it is an ideal chance to raise funds for this organization whose cause has affected my life so much.”
Wenger (BSc ’09) excelled while earning his mathematics degree. He received the Governor General’s Silver Medal, conferred annually on the graduating undergraduate student with the best academic record. He was featured in the Journal and Concordia Magazine.
Following his graduation, he spent a year working as an actuary with Guardian Life Insurance in New York City. It was in the Big Apple that he picked up his passion for running.
In June 2009, he ran a five-mile fundraising race for prostate cancer in NYC. That experience led him to register in February 2010 for the Ottawa Half Marathon that spring. He had to withdraw due to his father’s illness.
When he returned to Montreal to begin his MSc in mathematics in July 2010, he began training heavily for the Montreal Half Marathon late that summer. Completing the race, he took more away from the experience than just personal satisfaction.
“As I crossed the finish line, my elation at completing my first race was only marred by the absence of my father,” he says. “I resolved to take my passion for running and use it to honour the memory of my beloved father,” a teacher who was very well known in Snowdon and Côte-des-Neiges.
“When I cross the finish line in May, I’ll be thinking of him, but not just him. I’ll be thinking of those people out there who are currently suffering from these illnesses. This is what I can do in his memory.”
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Sponsor Wenger in his effort to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Canada. The deadline for donations is April 21.
Related links:
• “Adding Up Accomplishments” – Concordia University Magazine, Fall 2009
• The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada
• BMO Vancouver Marathon