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Participants share pride in carrying Olympic torch 9 · Friday, December 18, 2009 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com Continued from page 7 Aziz bore the torch in Oshawa Wednesday, Dec. 16. While his injury sidelined a promising hockey career and threatened to not let him walk again, Aziz is an accomplished rower. "Being an athlete in an Olympic sport, rowing, and having Olympic aspirations, as well as being a survivor from Sick Kids, they thought it would be perfect if I could run it for them," said Aziz, a rower who participated in the Canada Summer Games and was Ontario's flag bearer for those games. "I could not be more excited to be a part of the torch's journey and the whole Olympic Games.I am an extremely proud Canadian, and being at an American school (Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island), I make sure everyone knows how great a country we are. I am so pumped for Canada, and B.C. and I am just thrilled to be a part of it," said Aziz. Like many, it's not the 300 metres, but the spectre of dropping the torch that weighs on torchbearers' nerves Dan Aziz before their big day. "I am on Brown University's Crew Team, which is an NCAA Div 1 sport, and we get trained pretty hard down here so I hope I am able to cope with this distance. Its not the cardio that is most important to train for, but the way I hold the torch without dropping it is what I am most concerned about. Father and son carry torch in Oakville on Saturday Greg Westlake always thought it never had a big interest in a would be the other way around. Paralympic sport or sledge hockey. Westlake will hand the Olympic My dad was one of the first to tell flame to his father, Jim, when the me about it. He's a big supporter of torch relay passes through Oakville the Paralympics. tomorrow (Saturday) afternoon. "(My parents) had a lot of talks And the irony isn't with me, telling me lost on the 23-year-old about the benefits of sledge hockey player, playing sledge hockey. who will shoot for his One of the biggest pros second Paralympic was if I got good Games gold three enough, I might get months from now in the opportunity to Vancouver. travel the world and "I've been building play in world champimy whole life hoping onships. At the time, I he'd pass the torch to didn't believe them," me, through work and Greg continued. "They business," Westlake always say your parsaid of his father, a Jim Westlake ents know best and, in high-ranking executive with RBC. this case, they did." "I'll be trying to think of something Greg will carry the torch along witty and clever when I hand it off Lakeshore Road to Maple Grove to him." Drive, where Jim will take over. Beyond the irony, Greg said the Participants typically give each opportunity to pass the torch to his other a high five when the torch father is also a chance to say changes hands, but Greg has somethanks. thing a bit more contemporary in Jim, wife Deb and family have mind. always been supportive of Greg's "I thought we should fist bump sledge hockey career. In fact, Jim and explode it," he said with a and Deb were the ones who sug- laugh. "We're trying to think of gested to Greg that he take up the ways to be creative." sport in the first place. The Westlake family, which will "I was playing standup hockey go out to watch the Games in all my life until age 15," said Greg, March, will be clad in Greg's Team whose legs were both amputated Canada jerseys while he and Jim when he was 18 months old. "I run the torch. Maybe I'll practice by running with a mini hockey stick," Aziz told the Beaver earlier this week before he ran. Oakville resident Andrew Melito, a regional manager with United Furniture Warehouse The Brick Warehouse is running in Burlington's LaSalle Park Saturday. "I am extremely excited to be part of this event. I chose to participate as it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and to try and demonstrate to my children who are 13 and 10 years old, as best I could, what it means to be a proud Canadian," said Melito, who plays hockey and has been on the treadmill practicing. Grazyna Dudar, 56, will also carry the torch in Burlington Saturday. "I will be walking so I can cherish every moment. When the torch went through Mississauga for the 1988 Olympics, I was not able to see it with the rest of my family because I needed to stay home with my youngest. All I got to see were some blurry pictures," said Dudar, an Olympics fan who was in Athens for the 2004 games. "This is the closest I will ever be to the Olympics. I am honoured. I am so excited, thrilled, ecstatic, elated, overjoyed and am counting the days," said Dudar, "The torch weighs 3.3 lbs so I am not sure what that will be like. Hopefully my arms won't get tired." Oakville's Twane Boettinger of Glen Abbey, will carry the Olympic flame Sunday in Stoney Creek. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to carry a piece of history and come as close to participating in the Olympics as I ever will," said the 44 year-old who has lived here eight years. "This is an amazing opportunity and I am honoured to be carrying the torch. We are having an Olympic after-party following my run," said Boettinger, who also runs marathons, having just completed the New York Marathon Nov. 1. "I train every week for this. I have been working on my smile and crowdenthusing, full-arm waving motion though," he joked. Ken Cripps, 62, is a 14-year Oakville resident who will carry the torch in Burlington Saturday. "I have always enjoyed watching the Olympic Games on television and thought this would be a great way to become involved with the Olympic spirit, especially since Canada is home to the Olympics in 2010. I could never have made it to the Olympics as an athlete, so this is as close as I'm ever going to get," said Cripps, an Oakville YMCA member. "I feel so honoured to have been chosen to carry the torch and proud to be a Canadian. I am so excited, as are my family and friends who will be there supporting me during my run," he said. Cheryl Miller, of Westmount Drive, is 48 and moved here with her family from Windsor in 2004. She is running on the Toronto-to-Brampton route. "I wanted to be a part of the 2010 Olympics and to share my pledge with others. Many people come and go from their workplaces, neighbourhoods and communities everyday and never really take it in -- they miss opportunities for improvement, recognition and gratitude. I pledge to make a meaningful contribution to my community by actively caring, giving, challenging, thanking, listening and loving. My challenge to others is to be a conscious friend, parent, consumer, neighbour, volunteer or leader," said Miller. "I feel honoured. Although I've never been an athlete, I feel my contributions to the community are significant as a professional, donor and volunteer," said Miller, who has run three local 5 km races -- Tim Hortons Run for the Camp, OTMH Classic and the Santa Shuffle -- as training. "I haven't practiced with torch in hand, so we'll see how that goes," said Miller echoing that familiar worry. Oakville resident Erin Redshaw carried the torch Nov. 27 in Mirimichi, New Brunswick. "It was the thrill of a lifetime," said Redshaw who has lived in Oakville for 46 years. Taylor Amos is in Grade 10 at White Oaks Secondary School. 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