In an act of both self-preservation and consciousness-raising, Kirstin Whitford, wife of the late Joey Whitford, has headed out on a cross-Canada road trip to visit friends and spread the word about cystic fibrosis (CF) research.
After hitting the road on Saturday, August 20, Kirstin will be driving across the country, from Vancouver Island to St. John’s, Newfoundland, in 65 days, giving out 65 copies of the documentary 65_RedRoses along the way. The documentary, which won multiple awards at film festivals and aired on CBC’s The Passionate Eye, chronicles the fight against cystic fibrosis by Eva Markvoort, a Vancouver woman who lost her fight against the disease at the age of 25.
Joey and Kirstin knew Markvoort as Joey’s struggle while waiting for a double lung transplant in many ways intersected with Markvoort’s. Her transplant came 65 days after Joey’s. Both anniversaries will be honoured by Kirstin’s trip as she leaves on the anniversary of Joey’s transplant and returns to Vancouver on the anniversary of Markvoort’s.
During her trip Kirstin will be visiting Markvoort’s parents, along with the relatives of other people she knows who lost loved ones to CF. The 65 copies of the documentary that she will be giving away will go to people she knows, local media along the way and in some cases just random people.
“It’s been rough with Joey passing away, to say the least,” said Kirstin. “So one of the ways that I’m trying to cope with that is by continuing our work towards trying to find a cure for cystic fibrosis and raising more awareness.”
For one of her first stops Kirstin will heading to Burnaby on Friday, August 26 to speak at the opening of the Longest Game 4 CF, a fundraising event that will see 40 women play hockey for over 10 days for a total of 242 hours to raise money and break the Guinness World Record by 65 minutes.
“My aim is to bring it to a wider audience and make more people care and help them form a connection,” said Kirstin.
Kirstin visited City of Powell River Mayor Stewart Alsgard the day before heading out on her trip to present him with a copy of the 65_Red Roses DVD and to tell him about her pending journey. Alsgard knew Joey and his family and talked with Kirstin about Joey’s legacy and the importance of research.
“In Joey’s case an infectious personality rings in one’s ears and for those that had the privilege of knowing him and seeing it,” said Alsgard. “Here you are, the champion for this and I admire that...You’ve got that personal guts and courage…in light of all of this to stand up and talk and do what you’re doing.”
Central Mountain Air is flying Kirstin north to go pick up a car that Central GM in 100 Mile House is lending her for the trip, a show of generosity that Kirstin said she has seen throughout her campaigns with Joey and is delighted to still be seeing even though Joey is no longer here.
“It’s pretty amazing that people are still continuing to step up,” said Kirstin, “because help is great but I know it’s been a really long haul for us and so I don’t have that expectation. Knowing that people still care is amazing.”
Kirstin said the level of care and knowledge about cystic fibrosis has increased exponentially due to research since Joey was born with the disease in the late 1970s. At that time the average lifespan for someone with the disease was far lower then it is today. Even Joey, who lost his battle while in his 30s, exceeded doctors’ expectations time and time again by beating the odds and living past the projected amount of time he had left in his life.
To find out more about cystic fibrosis or to donate to research on the disease, interested readers can visit www.cysticfibrosis.ca. Information on organ donation can be found at www.transplant.bc.ca. Kirstin’s trip can be followed on her blog at www.cfsucks.com. A shortened version of the documentary 65_RedRoses can be viewed online by searching for it at
