Johnston Group created the Advisor Charitable Match Program to team up with our advisors across the country who are supporting community initiatives that make a difference.
June 2024
What distance would you go to save lives? For Michele Mactaggart and the Bensol Consulting team, it’s a more than 200 km bike ride from downtown Toronto to Niagara Falls in the Princess Margaret Ride to Conquer Cancer.
“Raising money for cancer research is important to me because I feel like it helps everyone,” says Mactaggart. “Unfortunately, we all know someone affected by this horrible disease. The really sad times are when you see people riding with pictures of their kids on their backs.”
The Ride helps fund research and patient care at The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, where it’s all about the right treatment for the right patient, at the right time. They’re known for game-changing scientific achievements and exceptional patient care.
Mactaggart says she’s lost too many people in her life to cancer and that prompted her to support this cause. But, seeing how The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre is turning the tide inspires her.
“I came to a stop beside a gentleman during the Ride,” says Mactaggart, “When he turned to me, I was taken aback because he had lost his nose and part of his face was disfigured. He told me he had a 5% chance of living and The Princess Margaret saved his life. That’s why I ride.”
The two-day Ride started in Toronto, then participants biked just over 100 km to Hamilton where they stayed overnight at McMaster University. On day two, they rode to Niagara Falls.
Mactaggart’s team at Bensol Consulting is the local representative for Chambers Plan group benefits in Guelph, ON. The Plan’s administrator, Johnston Group, was excited to help share their story and match their contribution through Johnston Group’s Advisor Charitable Match Program. The program supports charitable organizations that are having a direct impact on their local communities.
Donations make it possible for The Princess Margaret to continue doing world-class research as one of Canada’s top five cancer treatment and research centres and one the world’s largest dedicated hospital-based cancer clinical research units. The hundreds of leading doctors and world-class researchers at The Princess Margaret have a single goal: to conquer cancer in our lifetime.
Research at The Princess Margaret has created real progress in beating cancer. In 1963 they discovered the stem cell and its ability to renew and repair human tissues; a revolutionary moment in cancer research and care. They pioneered immunotherapy, a less toxic alternative to chemotherapy. They also developed a simple blood test to detect different kinds of cancer and their location in the body, allowing doctors to detect cancer earlier, when it’s more curable.
Mactaggart says meeting her team’s fundraising goals for the Ride is, of course, appreciated by the charity. But for her, a gruelling 200 km bike ride to make it happen is her real reward.
“Doing something that pushes your physical limits that hard, it’s really emotional. You’re done, and you’re tired, but you’re wired at the same time and have this real sense of belonging.”
