May 6, 2024 Donor Spotlight: Sheldon Miller Top Gutsy Walk fundraiser shares what motivates him to give back Sheldon Miller, one of the country’s top Gutsy Walk fundraisers, has been involved with Crohn’s and Colitis Canada’s largest fundraising event for the last twenty years. In this time, he’s raised at least $20,000a year for Crohn’s and Colitis Canada! What keeps him going? “As someone with ulcerative colitis, I feel somewhat obligated to do my small part in raising some funds leading to better treatments and a cure for those in need,” says Sheldon. Sheldon’s incredible efforts have led to over $525,000 raised to date. His good work is part of the over $150 million invested by Crohn’s and Colitis Canada since 1974 in finding the cures for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Changes and improvements in care for people with IBD have led to new treatments and lower rates of surgery. Currently, there is a diagnosis of IBD every 44 minutes in Canada—or 2 Canadians finding out they have Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis during the course of one Gutsy Walk. “Every year, family and friends get together to do this walk, and it has become a family tradition. We are overjoyed to help this cause, which is not fully understood publicly, and be a part of the solution,” Sheldon says. Public perception is changing around IBD, but not fast enough, as the number of people being diagnosed with the disease will climb from over 322,000 Canadians currently living with IBD to 470,000 in 2035. What impact is Sheldon making? “Emotionally, it is a great feeling to help the cause…the impact for myself is knowing I am doing the right thing in lending a hand,” he says. For more information or to partner with us at Gutsy Walk, please visit gutsywalk.ca To see Sheldon’s efforts in action, visit his 2024 Gutsy Walk fundraising page.