Taking strides for diabetes awareness

THE Surf Coast community will gather at the Torquay Angling Club on October 31 for the annual Lap the Map for Diabetes walk.

Held by the Torquay Lions, the national event in an initiative of Lions Australia and will this year run as part of the Positive Ageing initiative in the Surf Coast Shire.

The event takes place in the lead up to World Diabetes Day on November 14, with Torquay Lions service chair Catherine Rowe encouraging everybody to head down for the event.

“Join us for an easy walk above Fisherman’s Beach, hear about the Lions sundial, meet some like-minded locals and increase diabetes awareness,” she said.

Lap the Map aims to raise awareness of the impact of diabetes, with all donations from the walk going towards the Lions’ Diabetic Alert Dog program,

Costing approximately $40,000 to train, Diabetic Alert Dogs are provided to eligible participants with type 1 diabetes at no cost to the recipient.

Alert dogs are trained to touch their owners with one paw when their blood glucose levels are outside the target range, they can also retrieve a Hypokit, seek assistance from a member of the household and press a button to call emergency contacts.

“The more funds they raise, the more dogs they can train and the more research they can do,” Ms Rowe said.

Lions Australia are aiming to walk a combined distance of 25,760km, exceeding the nation’s circumference.

The walk will come to an end with a cuppa and a chat, where everybody is welcome.

“Finish with some refreshments to encourage us all to explore, engage and evolve,” Ms Rowe said.

A cold coin donation is requested at the walk, EFTPOS is available, the walk will begin from the Angling Club at 3pm.

For more information, head to lionsclubs.org.au