Small town, big impact:
Two locals raise $21,438 for Crohn’s and Colitis awareness
June 15, 2026, 9:54 am
Joey Light
On a warm and sunny Sunday in Regina, hundreds of people gathered to take part in the annual Gutsy Walk, a fundraising and awareness event supporting those living with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Among them was longtime advocate Nancy Apshkrum and young community ambassador Charlie Leslie, whose shared commitment to raising awareness has helped make a significant impact across Saskatchewan.
This year’s Regina Gutsy Walk raised $43,251, with Apshkrum and Leslie accounting for $21,438 of that total, nearly half of all funds raised. The pair finished as the event’s top two individual fundraisers, and donations towards their campaigns remain open until the end of June.
The Gutsy Walk, organized by dedicated volunteers, brings together patients, families, supporters, and healthcare advocates from across the province. This year’s event featured entertainment from the Saskatchewan Roughrider Pep Band and local performers, including a young salsa dancer living with Crohn’s disease. Participants were welcomed with words of thanks for volunteers, sponsors, and donors before taking part in the five-kilometre walk.
“It’s always a really positive atmosphere,” Apshkrum said. “The volunteers work incredibly hard, and every year they find a way to make the event special. This year’s ceremonial ribbon cutting even featured a strand of toilet paper stretched across the starting line, which was really funny and cute.”
For Apshkrum, fundraising is a three-month commitment that begins each spring. Over the years, she has built strong relationships with supporters who eagerly await her annual visit. Many prefer the personal touch of a face-to-face conversation over online donations.
“I’ve known many of these people for years,” she explained. “They want to visit, have a coffee, and talk. It’s about more than just asking for donations.”
As a newer participant in the fundraising effort, Leslie said she wasn’t certain she would reach her goal.
“I didn’t think I was going to make my goal,” she said. “A lot of people donated during the last week or even on the day of the walk.”
Together, they raised thousands of dollars toward research, patient support programs, and awareness initiatives. More importantly, they continued conversations about a disease that often remains misunderstood.
For Leslie, who was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis at age 12, awareness is deeply personal.
“When I was first diagnosed, I didn’t really understand what was happening,” she said. “I was frustrated and confused. I just wanted to be a normal kid.”
Over the years, Leslie has undergone numerous treatments, hospital visits, and surgeries. While medical advancements have improved care for many patients, the disease continues to affect every aspect of life for those living with it.
“I want to be in school. I want to get a degree,” she said. “I don’t want to keep waiting to be healthy enough to move forward.”
Apshkrum understands that journey well. Her son Jeff was also diagnosed with Crohn’s disease at age 12. Looking back, she believes he may have lived with symptoms for years before receiving a diagnosis.
“That’s why awareness and early detection are so important,” she said. “People often think bowel disease only affects older adults, but that simply isn’t true. It affects children and young people too.”
Both women emphasized that early diagnosis can dramatically improve outcomes. While there is no cure, treatments continue to evolve, offering patients more options and a better quality of life than ever before.
Those advancements are one of the reasons they remain committed to fundraising year after year.
“When my treatment started, I had to travel regularly to Saskatoon,” Leslie explained. “Now there are medications that can be administered at home.
Because of research and the money people raised before me, I was able to spend more time being a kid instead of constantly travelling for treatment.”
For Apshkrum, the motivation comes from seeing success stories.
“Research costs money,” she said. “Every new treatment, every improvement, happens because people continue to support the cause. When you see people living full lives despite this disease, that’s what keeps you going.”
Community support has also played a major role in their fundraising success. Local businesses, organizations, friends, family members, and neighbours continue to rally around the cause each year.
The strong community response was reflected not only in individual donations but also in the support of local businesses.
Kari’s Pharmacy selected Leslie’s Gutsy Walk campaign as one of the initiatives to support through a new monthly donation program.
“We’re planning to donate a portion of our cash sales every month to a different cause,”owner Kari Meyer said. “The Crohn’s and Colitis Gutsy Walk was something we supported last year, and we wanted to support it again this year.”
Meyer said the fundraiser was a natural fit because it combines a local connection with a cause focused on health and wellness.
“It ties in with being local, as well as something within a health-related field,” she said. “It was a really good fit for us to support Charlie.”
Another example is The Witch’s Brew, a local coffee shop that has supported Leslie’s fundraising efforts for years. Owner Sandra Garrett said the business has been donating their coffee sales from a designated day each year to support Leslie’s campaign.
“I’ve pretty much been supporting Charlie since she got diagnosed,” Garrett said. “In the last couple of years, we’ve donated coffee sales for a day toward Charlie’s fundraising effort because we want to help.”
This year, the coffee shop contributed $625 through a combination of coffee sales and customer donations.
“Some of that was from how many people came in for coffee that day, and then a few people left donations as well.”
“It’s amazing to see people come together,” Leslie said. “Everyone supports each other.”
Beyond fundraising, the walk provides something equally valuable, a connection.
“It’s nice being around people who understand what you’ve been through,” Leslie said. “You can talk about your experiences, but you can also talk about anything else and know they understand.”
During this year’s event, Apshkrum met a woman who had undergone many of the same surgeries Leslie is preparing to face. The woman offered her phone number and encouragement, hoping to connect with Charlie before her next procedure.
“That’s one of the best parts of the walk,” Apshkrum said. “People find each other. They share experiences. They support each other.”
As another successful Gutsy Walk comes to a close, both women remain grateful for the support they receive from their community and beyond.
“I appreciate the unwavering support,” Apshkrum said. “People are incredibly generous, and they continue to show up year after year.”
She also credits Leslie for helping bring a younger perspective to the cause.
“I’m the parent of someone with Crohn’s disease, but Charlie is living it,” Apshkrum said. “Together, we can reach people in different ways.”
Their partnership, built on shared experience and a common goal, continues to inspire others to learn more, speak openly, and support those affected by inflammatory bowel diseases. For both women, the goal remains simple, raise awareness, support research, and ensure that no one faces the journey alone.
Click on the link to donate to Nancy Apshkrum’s Gutsy Walk - https://crohnsandcolitiscanada.akaraisin.com/ui/gutsywalk2026/participant/1658186
Click on the link to donate to donate to Charlie Leslie’s Gutsy Walk - https://crohnsandcolitiscanada.akaraisin.com/ui/gutsywalk2026/participant/6937159 Tweet
