The son and best friend of a Turner Valley RCMP officer who lost his battle to cancer last year are lacing up in hopes to help those who still have a chance.
Fourteen months after Jeremy Perdue died from complications associated with acute myeloid leukemia, Joe Armstrong and 12-year-old Dallas Perdue are joining hundreds of others in the 25 km OneWalk to Conquer Cancer in Calgary on June 24 in Perdue’s memory. Money raised supports cancer research and care for cancer patients through the Alberta Cancer Foundation.
“April 29 was the one year anniversary of Jeremy’s passing,” said Armstrong, Perdue’s best friend. “It was certainly on my mind. I had previously participated in the (Enbridge) Ride to Conquer Cancer and I was hoping to find something to do with Dallas.”
Perdue was diagnosed with cancer in 2015 and underwent a bone marrow transplant and three rounds of chemotherapy. Despite doing well for months, the cancer relapsed on April 7 and Perdue died three weeks later at the age of 36.
Armstrong said he went to high school with Perdue in Airdrie during his senior year, and they remained close friends since.
“We both moved around a lot but we were always in touch in one way or another,” he said. “We definitely always kept in touch through Internet and social media.”
Armstrong said the two remained close, particularly once Perdue was diagnosed with cancer.
“I was very present through a lot of his struggles with leukemia,” he said. “That was a major event in my life - nothing compared to Dallas and the rest of his family. I think it’s something to remember him and to honour the spirit that he had.”
Armstrong had introduced Perdue to Kira, who he later married and had five children with, including their eldest son Dallas.
Armstrong wanted to honour the one year anniversary of his best friend’s death with Dallas.
Armstrong had participated in the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer two years ago, in honour of his mom who survived cancer and family members he lost to cancer, but knew the 200 km ride would be too much for a 12 year old.
Then Armstrong learned about the OneWalk to Conquer Cancer.
“I thought it would be something really cool to do together,” he said. “There were so many pros to it. It supports a larger cause and being able to do this with Dallas is a great opportunity.”
Armstrong has played video games and watched movies with Dallas on many occasions, but wasn’t sure how the boy would respond to the idea.
“I didn’t know how enthusiastic he would be to the idea, but right away he was into it so I was excited about that,” he said. “It’s a good way for us to reconnect.”
The answer was obvious for Dallas.
“It was automatically yes,” he said. “I would not say no in any circumstance.”
Dallas said he’s always been close to his dad and feels he’d be proud of him for walking 25 km if he were alive today.
“My dad was probably one of my greatest friends, even though he always said to me, ‘I’m not your friend,’” he said. “I never believed it though.”
On April 22, Armstrong and Dallas joined the OneWalk team for a five kilometer practice walk through Nose Hill Park.
“We did it to see if we could do a minimum of five km last month,” Armstrong said. “It was a breeze. No problem.”
Feeling confident that they can tackle the full walk, Armstrong and Dallas are now working hard at raising the rest of the money required to participate in the event. Armstrong said they’ve raised $2,495 so far and are looking to the community to raise that last $605.
After signing up in early spring, they received a lot of support from friends, family, coworkers and members of the Turner Valley detachment.
“We were getting a lot of really positive response,” Armstrong said.
“There’s lots of encouragement.”
The fundraising has slowed down recently and Armstrong hopes to see it pick up before the big day on June 24.
“In the last few weeks it’s completely stalled,” he said. “That’s our biggest hurdle at the moment.”
Those interested in supporting Armstrong and Dallas in the OneWalk to Conquer Cancer can make their contribution online at http://bit.ly/2raXr4b
