Community generosity helps man living with Huntington’s disease enjoy the trip of a lifetime

With the summer season winding down, Brad Carmichael is now spending a lot of time looking back on his recent European vacation.

“Oh man, it was a great time and the best time in my life,” said Carmichael, who was diagnosed in 2018 with Huntington’s disease, a rare, fatal, mostly inherited brain disease.

In June, Carmichael and his family travelled abroad to five-star locations — to a part of the world he always wanted to visit.

“Italy, Nice, Pompeii, France and Barcelona,” said Carmichael.

The trip became a reality thanks to the generosity and ingenuity of Katie Mahoney, a friend of the family and an avid runner.

"When I run, I think about having the ability to run,” said Mahoney.

Last spring, Mahoney was preparing for a race through the Amazon jungle — a daunting task as she soon discovered.

But it was also a fundraising opportunity.

“I used this race to fundraise for an unfulfilled dream that Brad might have,” said Mahoney.

That dream was a European vacation on a cruise ship.

Mahoney asked supporters to sponsor her $87 for every kilometre of the 230-kilometre race through the Amazon. The run was derailed after complications emerged in Ecuador, but she still raised $35,000 in about a month.

That money paid for Carmichael and his family to see some of his favourite spots on the European map.

“To be on the receiving end from the community, that is the definition of what happens when a community comes together,” said Carmichael.

His mother, Peggy Carmichael Mastin, said the trip came at the perfect time.

“This is a happy household. And we like to laugh,” said Carmichael Mastin.

But the laughter had recently stopped. Huntington's disease was not only taking a toll on her son. Carmichael’s father and grandmother also died from the disease.

Mahoney’s generosity transformed the mood and the tone in the household.

“My heart was just so filled with joy, and happiness, and thankfulness," said Carmichael Mastin. "Just to receive the warmth, and love really just gave me a shot in the arm.”

Carmichael said he still can’t find the words to thank everyone properly.

According to Mahoney, this experience proves an old cliché true — it’s better to give than to receive.

“Seeing other people’s dreams and aspirations come true, to me, that means everything," said Mahoney. "Like Brad said, we only have one life.”