Iron Ward for Roads and Parks

Hey there, my name is Ward, Chief Operating Officer of the Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF; www.tirf.ca), a Canadian registered charity. Our mission is to ensure everybody makes it home safe when using our roads. I have worked passionately throughout my entire career to create safe and healthy environments for people like you and me, through academic research, education and getting my hands dirty in the real world.

I am training for an Ironman 140.6 (3.9 km/2.4 mile swimming, 180.2 km/112 mile biking, 42.2 km/26.22 mile running) to raise funds for TIRF. Race day is May 20th, 2024.

Given my lifelong work, it's probably obvious to you why "Roads" is in my fundraiser title. But what about Parks? Well, when I'm not swimming, biking or running, and when all the work is done, I like to go for walks, especially since my wife Robyn and I got a little puppy named Kallik. If you're wondering, Kallik is the black and white one. He is a Husky German Shephard mix that we rescued from Iqaluit and the name we gave him means Lightning in Inuit.

So I am also fundraising for Park Rx America (parkrxamerica.org), a US charity committed to educating health care practitioners about the importance of spending time in and around nature to improve human and planetary health.

Long story short, I want to use my journey to completing a full Ironman as a vehicle to fundraise for these two amazing charities. All proceeds will be donated; each charity will get half.

You can follow me on Instagram if you want to find out more about my journey: ironwardgm