A Huntsville resident is diving in for a 9-kilometre swim to raise money for Muskoka’s first MRI.
At 8:00 a.m. on July 30, Joy Jarvis will kick off from the town docks off Main St., making her way through Hunter’s Bay to Lake Vernon, around Gallaugher Island, and back.
For over a decade, Jarvis’ long-distance swims have raised money for Hospice Huntsville. She says she was looking to change it up, and getting an MRI for Muskoka was a worthy cause.
“I think it’s a very important piece of diagnostic imaging that would benefit the residents of the community,” says Jarvis. “Right now, they have to go to Orillia or North Bay, so if we can get something like that in the community, it’ll save people travelling outside the region.”
Jarvis says she’s been training three to four times a week, building up from one kilometre to six kilometres. Although she’ll start her swim in the early morning, she says she’s not worried about cold water. “Each year it varies, some years the water is cool at the beginning, but once I get going it’s fine. I adapt to the temperature.”
At the time of writing, Jarvis had already raised more than 95 per cent of her $5,000 goal. Anyone interested in donating can visit the fundraiser page, or donate directly to the Huntsville Hospital Foundation.
“Hoping for nice weather, sunny skies,” says Jarvis. “And if people want to come out, they can definitely watch me get into the water and when I get back. Would be wonderful. Anyone who’s out on the lake, if they want to come cheer me from their docks or decorate their docks, the colours for the foundation are white and blue.”
