Mike Duhacek adds another award to his trophy shelf

ELORA – Elora’s Mike Duhacek has made headlines again, but this time he did not pull a heavy sled with the word "cancer," nor did he walk or run a great distance through terrible weather to raise hope for cancer sufferers and funds for cancer research.

Duhacek did trek to Queen’s Park, but this time he was wearing a suit.

He was one of 20 Ontarians to receive the Queen Elizabeth II Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship on April 14, in recognition of his 13-year commitment to his Help Me Bury Cancer campaign.

“Talk about a humbling experience,” he said on the phone a few days after the event.

“It was an incredible experience, and everything was done so well. I cannot believe I was there.”

According to the province's website, the Medal for Good Citizenship “is the province’s second highest civilian honour and recognizes those whose leadership and exceptional volunteer service have left a lasting impact on their communities and helped build a stronger Ontario and Canada.”

The medals were presented by Lieutenant Governor Edith Dumont, who stated in a press release, “Service to others lies at the heart of our communities. Through the Queen Elizabeth II Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship, I am delighted to honour exceptional individuals and recognize their remarkable contributions across our province.”

Duhacek learned in February he was selected to receive the award but was sworn to secrecy until getting the all-clear from Dumont’s office.

He got to speak with Dumont for a few minutes at the event.

“She is the nicest, kindest, sweetest, generous person,” Duhacek said. “She is memorable.”

Duhacek is a civilian member of the Halton Regional Police Service. IN addition to his feats of strength and endurance, he also speaks to youth at schools and supports kids with cancer through the Cops for Cancer initiative.

That is what Dumont found most remarkable, Duhacek said.

“She told me to keep strong and keep motivating and helping kids,” he said. “It’s the future generation that’s important, she said, and I will take her advice.”

With this award, Duhacek may have to get a larger trophy shelf. 

He’s already received the Canadian Cancer Society Award of Extraordinary Achievement and Outstanding Support; the Halton Regional Police Award of Excellence in Community Support; and is a recipient of the Governor General's Caring Canadian Award (Sovereign's Medal).

And true to form, Duhacek said he’s got a couple of projects in the works for later this year.

First, he’s working on a ‘Help Me Bury Cancer’ clothing line that would include branded athletic wear with inspirational words under the hood, like "bravery," "courage."

He’s also planning a bigger event for the fall that he hopes will become a national program.

Rather than do one of his marathon journeys, Duhacek is proposing to build a track outside Halton Regional Police headquarters and to travel that track for a full seven days.

He’d have help – and he’ll need it, he said.

“It’s like Relay for Life on steroids,” he said with a laugh.

The idea is to have someone on the track at all times, filling in for others as they take breaks or fulfill their personal commitment to the team.

Duhacek said he’ll set his own endurance challenge and will also fill in when others take breaks.

“This will be a pilot project,” he said. “But I’d like to challenge other police services in Canada to do it as well.”

At 49, Duhacek said he’s still able to do strenuous activity and he’s been training for this.

The idea is to do something that's hard, because cancer is hard, and something that requires strength and teamwork, “because together we’re stronger.

“I’m hoping this blows up to be very big,” he said.

For more information visit helpmeburycancer.com.