The story of a husband’s journey across B.C. to save his wife

Tim Michalchuk is walking several thousand kilometres across British Columbia for the love of his life, but he would go much further if it meant finding a cure for multiple sclerosis (MS).

“I would circumnavigate the globe under my own steam if I knew it would result in a cure for my wife,” said Michalchuk, whose walk from Prince George to Vancouver made a pit stop in Merritt late Friday afternoon.

Michalchuk’s wife Shannon Dickson, 46, was diagnosed with MS more than six years ago, and she badly needs therapy as her symptoms have worsened dramatically over the past few months, he said. Michalchuk and Dickson have been together almost 10 years and have two children, Mavorneen, 7, and Peter, 4.

Shannon also has four adult children from a previous marriage and grandchildren.

She’s also the grandmother of a “beautiful six-month-old girl, and there is another one on the way,” said Michalchuk.

Michalchuk is calling his journey Walking One Million Steps To Save My Shannon.

Michalchuk and his grandparents, Dan and Joan Michalchuk, were treated to a barbecue from a generous Merritt family on Friday night.

They contacted Tim through social media and invited them to enjoy dinner with several friends and spend the night and take a hot shower before heading back on the road early Saturday morning.

Michalchuk, 28, left Prince George on April 2 and hopes to land in Vancouver later this week in an effort to raise between $40,000 to $60,000 needed for his wife to try experimental treatments in the United States and Mexico as her symptoms have become severe the past few months.

“She needs medical help quickly,” he said.

Michalchuk has managed to raise close to $8,000 so far, but expects those numbers to increase significantly as he gets closer to Vancouver.

He has started a Go Fund Me page using social media and donations can be made by going online and visiting www.gofundme.com/kehkkd4k.

Shannon managed to enjoy a good quality of life in the time since being diagnosed with MS until getting into a serious motor vehicle accident just before Christmas last year, said Michalchuk, a charming and well-spoken young man.

“Since the car accident, her symptoms have gotten progressively worse,” he said.

“She got banged up really badly in the accident and just the whole stress involved in being in a serious car crash isn’t a good thing when you are battling MS. She’s had a massive relapse and her symptoms have skyrocketed.”

His wife has been accepted into a program in the United States, where an American physician has shown great results with MS patients using stem cell transplant therapy, he said.

“We’re looking at a bunch of alternative therapies, but the stem cell therapy in the United States appears to be our best option at the moment,” he said.

“Unfortunately, all of these alternative treatments are expensive.”

Michalchuk decided to begin his journey in Prince George instead of his hometown of Bella Coola.

“We figured Prince George would be the best place to start simply because we could generate more interest and media interest in a bigger city instead of tiny Bella Coola,” said Michalchuk.

For the past four weeks, Michalchuk has covered between 35 and 50 kilometres every single day.

Despite some rigorous training to prepare for the walk, Michalchuk concedes the first few days were easily the most difficult.

“The first week was really rough and I have to admit I didn’t think I could do this around the second day walking down this massive hill heading into Quesnel,” he said. “My knees were just aching and my entire body was in agony, but I managed to hang in there and had a better day the next day.

“After the first week, near 100 Mile House, I just caught a second wind and I’ve been in pretty good shape ever since.”

Michalchuk reiterated he would extend his journey if it meant finding a cure for his wife.

“If I didn’t have a job and children to raise, I would most certainly consider doing something along the lines of what Terry Fox was trying to do in terms of going across all of Canada,” he said. “Right now, this walk across B.C. is something I knew I could do and I’ve only got a week or so to go. It’s been an amazing experience.”

When Canadian hero Terry Fox attempted his Marathon of Hope more than 30 years ago, he didn’t generate much interest and had very little success raising money until he hit Ontario after several months on the road (his journey started in Newfoundland) and Michalchuk is hopeful the good people in Vancouver are going to jump on board and come through with generous donations.

Even if he doesn’t reach his fundraising target, Michalchuk said he won’t ever forget the experience of walking across beautiful B.C.

“I had never been to the Okanagan before and it’s just spectacular,” he said. “This journey has allowed me to see many places I have never visited before and it’s incredible just how beautiful B.C. really is.

“Having my grandparents along for the journey has also been fantastic.”

His grandmother gets emotional talking about how proud she is of her grandson.

“What he’s doing is simply remarkable, and we couldn’t be prouder of him,” she said. “He loves his wife very much and to do this for her is amazing.”

During a phone call to the Herald, his wife Shannon said she misses her husband immensely and she couldn’t he more proud of him.

“The boys are missing their dad, but they are really supportive and so proud of what he’s doing,” she said. “We can’t wait to see him, and we’re hoping to all meet up in Vancouver as he approaches the finish line.”

Dickson said her symptoms continue to deteriorate, but she remains hopeful that some of the alternative therapy she will soon be pursuing will have positive results.

“My physical symptoms right now aren’t the best, but I remain hopeful,” she said.

Michalchuk said he’s in the best shape of his life because of this journey and while he has managed to battle a lot of physical pain over the past four weeks, it pales in comparison to the physical challenges his wife faces on a daily basis.

Since the car accident, Dickson said she has lost the function of her left hand and her husband has to cut up her food and she can no longer perform simple tasks like tying her shoes. She has lost use of the left side of her body and she has very little feeling on her right leg and needs a cane to move around most of the time.

Her speech can also become impaired and she often loses track of her thoughts and needs assistance getting dressed and getting in and out of her vehicle.

She and Michalchuk have done a lot of research about stem cell treatment and remain optimistic it will give her more strength and allow her to eliminate many of her most serious symptoms.

The money raised will go towards stem cell treatment, but the family also faces additional costs to purchase things like walkers and canes and renovations to their home including ramps.

For more information about Michalchuk’s walk across the province, you can visit his Facebook page at Million Steps to Save My Shannon.