The 6th annual Flexxaire Step ‘n Stride is raising money for Parkinson’s in nine locations across Alberta to help those with Parkinson’s, Lloydminster being one of them.

The event is being thrown on September 8th and 9th by the Parkinsons Association of Alberta and will take place at Bud Miller Park. The walk raised around $400,000 last year and the goal for this year is $415,000. Fund Development manager Dacey Cooper-Varga says the event has been progressing steadily since it’s inception.

“We’ve been slowly increasing every year and we’re looking to really push participates and registration and really engage the community as well as raising more awareness for Parkinson’s disease.”

The cities involved are the main locations for services in Alberta with the addition of Cochrane and Camrose. 1,700 participants were involved in the walk last year and the association is looking to increase to 2,000 in 2018. Cooper-Varga says the amount of people who have come together to help raise awareness really shows the impact of the event.

“I think it brings a good sense of community to all regions of the walk. They see people of young and old, people with Parkinson’s disease as well as their family, support and care partners.”

All money raised will stay in the region it was collected and will go towards support, services, education, and research for Parkinson’s disease. So far the event has raised $435 in Lloydminster, to register for the walk or donate you can go to the Step’n Stride Website.