A Greater Victoria real estate agency will be raising money on Aug. 11 in honour of a Saanich boy who died of a rare form of brain cancer in 2017.
Island Homes Group realtor Agustin Torres told Black Press Media his agency has been raising money for the BC Children’s Hospital since the son of a family friend, Liam Comboye, was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine gliomas at the age of 3.
Torres first organized a fundraiser at Centennial Park in September 2017. Half of the proceeds from the event went to the family and the other half went to the hospital.
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READ MORE: Remembering Liam Comboye — Family to set up non-profit for toddler who died of cancer
After Liam lost his battle with the brain tumour, Torres and his agency decided to continue fundraising for the hospital.
“We realized that this is something that is really good to do for the community,” he said.
He had done client appreciation events at Heritage Acres before and thought the Vancouver Island Model Engineers train ride on site would be fun “for kids here who don’t get to do too much at the Vancouver hospital.”
Even if a child is not mobile, he added, they can sit on the train and feel like they are a part of the event.
The second fundraiser they held in 2018, the first at Heritage Acres and solely for the hospital, attracted 650 people and raised $4,000.
“We are hoping to meet or surpass that goal,” Torres said, adding that all proceeds go to the hospital.
This year, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the Sunday, there will be train rides, food, children’s music by a local guitarist, games and historical artifacts from the Saanich Historical Artifacts Society.
The suggested donation for entry is $5 per person or $15 for a carload. Heritage Acres is located at 7321 Lochside Dr.
READ MORE: Military vehicles roll in at Heritage Acres, vintage style
karissa.gall@blackpress.ca
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