MacAdams was one of 250 Nova Scotians recognized for volunteering with the foundation. However she was one of just five that received their 25-year pin.
MacAdams says it was her neighbour, Carol Townsend, who got her involved with the foundation. Between the two of them they split up the Port Joli each year to canvass for funds. Canvassing though can be just as much about the social aspect as it is the fundraising.
"It was always nice just to go out to visit. Some days you didn't get much done," she says with a laugh.
MacAdams isn't sure how much money she has raised over the years, but she does know that people in Port Joli are very generous.
It was a little surprising it has been 25 years since she started canvassing she says, adding the years just seem to fly by. Each year the foundation gets volunteers to fill out forms with their information, including the number of years they have volunteered, but MacAdams had stopped counting years ago.
"I never kept run of it after 20. I'd just put 20 plus," she says.
MacAdams says it used to be at the end of each year she figured it would be her last, however when the fundraising campaign comes back around she finds herself back out going door to door. Now she says she'll keep doing it as long as her health keeps steady.
"I just take it in good stride and give it my best," she says.
“Volunteers are integral to the Heart and Stroke Foundation and its mission, and we are thankful for their incredible support,” said Menna MacIsaac, CEO, Nova Scotia, Heart and Stroke Foundation. “Whether supporting fundraising and health promotion activities, supporting door-to-door canvassing, or providing leadership on our board and committees, our volunteers are truly enabling positive change.”
Since 1956, the Heart and Stroke Foundation has invested $1.3 billion in research. Over the years, Foundation-funded research has led to many discoveries including the first-ever coronary unit for hospitalized heart attack patients, clot-preventing and clot-busting drugs, and identifying the modifiable risk factors that most often account for heart attacks and strokes.
