NEED TO KNOW

Henk Dykhuizen and Brian VanBlarcom grew up with

Ian Mosher in Wolfville.

They were best friends. They were classmates who spent plenty of time playing sports together.

While life took Dykhuizen to Ottawa, the friendship remained strong. They kept in touch and Dykhuizen stays with Mosher and his family when he visits the Annapolis Valley.

“We generally have picked up the conversation wherever we last left it off,” Dykhuizen said.

DIAGNOSIS

Mosher was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in October 2020. When it was confirmed in February, Dykhuizen knew he wanted to do something for Mosher and his family.

“Ian has not just been my friend, he's been that community person ever since I've known him,” he said.

After researching some ideas, Dykhuizen started a GoFundMe campaign to help purchase a wheelchairaccessible vehicle to help Mosher get around easier in the future.

It resonated with people. “This is a compelling story. Ian is terrific human being and has been so forever,”

A GoFundMe page set up to raise funds to purchase a wheelchair-accessible vehicle to help Wolfville’s Ian Mosher get around easier in the future. Mosher was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in October 2020.

The fundraiser was created by Mosher’s lifelong friend Henk Dykhuizen and it has been spread through various circles Mosher has impacted.

The goal was to raise $50,000. As of Jan. 17, more than $65,000 had been raised. Dykhuizen estimated it could cost upwards of $90,000 to acquire the needed vehicle and hopes to get as close as possible to the required amount.

“I’m just overwhelmed. … I’ll never forget them, and I’ve pledged to try to thank every one of them individually in some small way.”

Dykhuizen and his wife, Daphne, started the Dykhuizen Foundation about a dozen years ago. It has committed to matching the GoFundMe campaign contributions up to $25,000 in each of the 2021 and 2022 calendar years. Daphne is originally from Grand Manan, N.B. Mosher said Dykhuizen’s work speaks to him as a friend and a leader. “I can’t thank him and his wife Daphne enough.”

Any excess funds raised through the GoFundMe campaign will be donated to ALS Society of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

Dykhuizen said.

The campaign began Nov. 21 with an initial goal of $50,000. As of Jan. 17, more than $65,000 had been raised. Dykhuizen estimated it could cost upwards of $90,000 to acquire the needed vehicle and hopes to get as close as possible to the required amount.

VanBlarcom and his wife, Margaret, were two of the people who helped spread word of the fundraiser in the Valley and beyond.

“It was just amazing how people said, ‘I want to help, what can I do?” Margaret recalled. “It's been heartwarming to see.”

“Ian has been a tremendous friend forever,” Brian added. “(He’s) really meant a lot in terms of baseball to the community and it just seemed like an opportunity to try and help (him).”

Brian pointed to the large crowd that turned out on a mid-August evening when Mosher was inducted into the Kentville Wildcats Hall of Fame as to his impact.

“There was a lot of people there from other communities,” he said. “Maybe we shouldn't be surprised with the GoFundMe page success given the outpouring of (support) when we had the (induction ceremony) at the ballpark.”

Dykhuizen accompanied Mosher to the VanBlarcoms when he told them about the diagnosis. The couple was shocked.

Brian said ALS is a rare disease that people don’t expect to hit so close to home.

“You always sort of think it happens to other people, but it doesn't.”

Mosher was not initially aware of the online fundraiser.

When he found out, the appreciative Mosher reached out to his lifelong friend in Ottawa.

“He says, ‘I see you've been busy,’” Dykhuizen recalled.

OVERWHELMED

Mosher said he was “emotionally overwrought” upon learning what his childhood friends and family had set in motion.

“How can I thank all these people? How can I possibly be deserving of this level of support?” Mosher said of his initial reaction. “For all of my friends to tackle an issue that is down the road for me is not only amazing, but just life transcending. I’m just overwhelmed.”

Mosher said the disease has led to weight loss and impacted his breathing and ability to walk. But he remains positive and continues to work as a youth worker at the Nova Scotia Youth Centre in Waterville.

“So, I’m still a productive member of society, but let's just put it this way, my fastball was never very good; it’s really bad now.”

Dykhuizen said Mosher is a teacher by nature and kids and adults, alike, have responded to him.

“That’s been a characteristic of Ian as long as I’ve known him,” he said. “I just feel that he’s been that kind of a giving person and that’s why, I think, that you’re seeing the response that people have to the campaign. … This is an opportunity for them to maybe give back and help him.”

Mosher doesn’t want to think about the potential of mobility issues in the future.

“I try to live squarely in the moment and stay out of my future because, generally, the things in my future are not going to be as good as they are today.”

A number of people on his medical team have told Mosher how he is handling things is different than most.

“I can only live my life the way that I know,” Mosher said. “Quite frankly, I've grown up with one way to go and that's full speed ahead and try to be positive every day and I will continue to do that until I draw my last breath.”

Mosher said he is overwhelmed by the support from people near and far from those he has spent many special memories with to people he has never met.

“I’ll never forget them.”