'I know what war's all about': 103-year-old B.C. man begins fundraising walk for Ukrainian children
John Hillman, a Second World War veteran living in Oak Bay, B.C., has kicked off his fundraiser for Ukrainian children and families affected by war.
The 103-year-old began his campaign Monday, and plans to walk 103 laps around the courtyard of his independent living centre.
Hillman's scheduled to walk 10 laps around the courtyard every day, and local children are slated to join him on his walks next week.
The centenarian is raising money for the Save The Children charity, with funds going towards Ukrainian children.
"It touched my heart to see those kids being herded away from their homes and without any hope of going back to them," said Hillman on Monday.
"It only amplified my desire to help them," he said.
This is the third year that Hillman has taken on a fundraising walk for Save The Children.
In 2020 and 2021, he walked 101 and 102 laps around his residence for his respective birthdays, raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity.
Last year, he braved a historic heatwave to continue his walk, when temperatures rose above 30 C in Oak Bay. On Monday, Hillman endured rain.
"The walk was wet," He said. "But I don't mind, I've been in worse weather than that during my service in the wartime."
As of Monday afternoon, Hillman had raised more than $19,500 for Save The Children. He hopes to raise $103,000 this year.
The veteran hopes that Canadians and people around the world will donate to the cause.
"I saw enough war. I served the whole of it," he said.
"I know what war's all about and I know what those kids will be facing. I was only 18 myself when I went."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their “extremely dangerous” experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Her fiance has been in prison for 49 years. She's trying to free him before it’s too late
She was lying in bed on a Thursday morning, thinking about the man she loved, hoping to win his freedom before time ran out.