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Local teen runs for her dad

Local girl takes place in the annual Vancouver Sun Run.
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Avery Spavor smiles as she hangs out with her father Julius. Avery will be taking part in the Vancouver Sun Run on April 17

Avery Spavor loves to run.

It’s something she’s done for a while, and was hoping to continue doing so when she moved to Vancouver to go to school.

“It’s kind of just a way to be by myself, and focus on something other than school, or all of life’s stuff,” she said. “I like doing it for my body, it makes me feel good.”

While looking for a run, her sister Ali told her about the Vancouver Sun Run, which takes place on April 17.

“I kind of kept it in the back of my mind,” she said. “When I came back down here for school, I looked into it.”

The Vancouver Sun Run is a 10 km road running event held in Vancouver each year on the third, though sometimes fourth, Sunday in April. It started in 1985 with 3,700 runners, and is now one of the largest road races in North America.

Until she signed up for the run, she wasn’t aware she could raise money for a cause. When that fact was revealed to her, shedecided to raise money for the B.C. Cancer Foundation.

Spavor’s father, Julius Spavor, is currently undergoing treatment for cancer.

“My dad is impressed that I like to run anyway, so I wanted to do a run just for that,” she said. “But finding out that I could raise money for him because he’s a cancer patient, was awesome.”

Training for the event can be intense. Spavor trains an average of six days a week.

She sets aside three to four days a week for different types of runs, which include focussing on things like speed, stamina, and the long run. Other days of the week, she focuses on her core, legs, and arms.

Running is one of the many things Spavor and her father have a shared passion for, and something they did together when she lived in Nakusp.

“He can’t run as much right now, but when I was home a couple of weeks ago we got out for a run, and that was his first run in a long time.”

In an interview with the Vancouver Sun, she said she’s hoping her fathermight be able to make it to Vancouver to cheer her on, but she knows he’ll be impressed no matter what.

“He told me he’s really proud of what I’m doing, and that it means a lot to him,” she said. “I know he would be running right beside me if he could.”

Anyone wishing to donate on Avery’s behalf can do so by going to her personal page at: donate.bccancerfoundation.com.,

or by going to the Overwaitea hot dog sale on Easter Sunday at Rotary Park. All proceeds from the sale go toward a pledge for Avery’s run.