From March 25 to March 26, six local paddleboarders will take part in a nationwide 24-hour paddle to raise money and show support for local families affected by cancer.
The participants — John Beausang, James Bain, April Zilg, Barry Blackburn, Tracy Skrabal and Nancy Preston — will paddle Wrightsville Beach’s waters in two-hour shifts, two at a time, from noon Friday, March 25 to noon Saturday. The public can participate by either joining the paddlers for a loop around the island or donating money to the cause.
The event will be staged out of Carolina Paddleboard Company, which will provide participants a place to sleep or eat. Skrabal said she already knows of at least one individual battling cancer who plans to participate.
She joked she was looking forward to people joining her and Preston for the 4 a.m. to 6 a.m. shift. But the event has been known to inspire that kind of dedication, said its creator, Troy Nebeker. When he held the first 24-hour paddle in 2015 in his hometown of Seattle, as many as 40 community members paddled alongside him at midnight.
“They showed up at midnight to paddle with a bunch of yahoos as a way to show their support. It’s awesome,” he said. “There’s no other way to put it.”
Nebeker described last year’s inaugural event as a grassroots effort with just he and his friends, but this year seven locations around the country, including Wilmington, are taking part. Each community is raising money for one or two local families affected by cancer.
Wilmington’s paddlers are raising money for Preston’s 7-year-old nephew, Owen, who has a rare form of brain cancer. He is currently undergoing chemotherapy and radiation. Their goal is to raise at least $1,000—$2,000 for Owen and the rest for other Wilmington families.
Nebeker said the idea is to put the money raised in an envelope along with a note stating, “There are people out there who love you and are fighting for you” and slip it to one or two local families.
The donation will only make a small dent in each family’s medical bills, he admitted, but he said it is meant to “give them a pause, a breath of fresh air. The opportunity to pay for some groceries, put gas in the tank, babysitters, a bill … maybe they’re able to take a mini trip or something, where they can put cancer on the back burner and be a family again.”
Nebeker knows the financial and emotional burden of a cancer diagnosis. He organized the inaugural 24-hour paddle after his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer and lymphoma. The discomfort of 24 hours on the water represents a small dose of the arduous journey undertaken by individuals and families fighting cancer, he said.
When you’re paddling through the night, he said, “it gives you an appreciation for somebody who has to sit in that chair and get chemo, and then feel like crap for the next 24 hours because they’ve got garbage pumping through their veins.”
While the event’s primary goal is showing compassion and solidarity to those fighting cancer, the event’s slogan, “Go Because You Can,” is meant to inspire those who are healthy.
People who are healthy don’t think about their health, Nebeker said. But when a catastrophic illness or injury robs a person of his or her abilities, he said, “It is your conversation. You’re not thinking about podiums, winnings, races, anything like that. You’re thinking, ‘How nice it would be to put on my running shoes and go for a walk, or swing my leg over my bike and pedal around the block.’”
“Life is pretty fragile,” he added. “You just never know.”
Nebeker created the 24-hour paddle for his Seattle community, but he’s excited to see the six other communities around the county take part this year and, he hopes, even more in years to come.
“Take this model, this hair-brained idea and inspire your community,” he said. “Make life better for somebody in your community who is struggling with this.”
To participate or donate, email [email protected] or visit www.gofundme.com/NC24HRMonster-Sea
email [email protected]
