SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Simone Cummings was told not to have children, as her diagnosis of multiple sclerosis could land her in a wheelchair unable to walk or talk to them.

Aria Bell and her mom Michelle Loyer Smith bike and walk for the wife of Michelle's co-worker, who has multiple sclerosis. - Emelie Peacock/NNSL photo

She now has two children.

For her sister Nicole Dunn, who came all the way from Iqaluit for the Yellowknife MS Walk, Saturday was about a lot more than fundraising.

"People need to realize what MS is. MS is a very hard thing to go through because you don't know, you don't know whats doing to happen," she said, before breaking into quiet tears.

Hopes and emotions ran high at the 5th annual walk.

Mayor Mark Heyck took the stage to proclaim May as MS Awareness Month, then organizers shared a hopeful message about the results of the past 10 years of research, including an increase in the available options for people living with relapsing or remitting MS, funded by walks like this.

At 11 a.m., participants streamed out of the Mildred Hall School and hit the pavement.

Organizer Laurie McLean said the needs of people with the disease in Yellowknife are currently well taken care of.

"Right now, we have an adaptive yoga program that runs and then we have support groups that run every third Thursday of the month," she said.

The $29,000 raised on Saturday will go to research and keeping local services running.

The mayor noted the winter city of Yellowknife can present mobility challenges and difficulty connecting with family living elsewhere.

"Yellowknife is a long ways away from other communities and perhaps home communities for other people who may have relatives who are suffering from MS," Heyk said. "It causes, I think, some very serious challenges for families dealing with those kinds of things."

McLean started the event five years ago, yet being the driving force behind the walk and the MS support community in Yellowknife is a big job.

She hopes to recruit a team for next year so she can take a step back and be an adviser.

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