A Walk for Chiari is a walk for this Bradford boy

Jennifer Donkin is doing her best to ensure a rare brain condition doesn't steal her son's dreams.

Donkin, mother of 10-year-old Mason – who plans to be a firefighter when he grows up – is mid-way through organizing her fourth Chiari Walk to raise money for the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.

"SickKids is an amazing place," Donkin said.

Mason sees nine doctors at SickKids who each deal with a specific area of his Chiari condition.

Chiari affects the cerebellum area of the brain at the back of the skull, putting pressure on parts of the brain and spinal cord, causing mild to severe symptoms.

Mason was diagnosed with the rare brain condition in 2017 when he was 5 years old. Chiari only occurs in about one in 1,000 births, but it can also be diagnosed later in life.

Donkin said Mason underwent two surgeries last fall to insert a "sort of pacemaker for his bladder," but he got an infection and had to undergo a second surgery to remove it.

A third surgery to replace the pacemaker is planned for later this summer.

"What can we do? We just try to stay positive and hopefully this time it works," she said.

What she and her friends and family have done, is raised more than $41,000 since she started the Walk for Chiari in 2017. They walked in 2018 and 2019 as well, but the pandemic put a hold on the fundraiser until this year when they plan to walk on July 23.

"I think it's going to be great – as long as we have good weather," she said.

The opening ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. at 471 Park Ave on the lawn of the Bradford West Gwillimbury Public Library in Bradford.