Wilmette resident Bill Bucklew, shown in 2015 with wife Heidi at the 2015 North Shore Triathlon, is taking part in his fourth North Shore Triathlon on Sept. 18, and will be raising money for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research. (Handout / HANDOUT)
When the 2016 North Shore Triathlon kicks off Sept. 18 at Gillson Park, Wilmette resident Bill Bucklew will be one of the adventurous souls braving Lake Michigan waters in the first leg of the race.
Bucklew is also the leader of a team of triathletes helping him raise money for the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, which works to fight the degenerative neurological disorder. That team, which stood at 35 people as the Labor Day holiday approached – 34 of them from Wilmette – has an ambitious fundraising goal, he said.
Bucklew, the chief operating officer of a housewares design company, was diagnosed with an early-onset version of Parkinson's in 2012.
Since then, he has dedicated much of his time to raising money to fight the disease, and the North Shore Triathlon, in which he's taken part every year since its inception, has played a major part in his efforts. He has also raised money for the foundation in other marathons, and even via a climb of Kenya's Mount Kilimanjaro.
Last year's North Shore Triathlon team effort netted more than $4,000, Bucklew said.
"This year we're on course to do more than that. I'm hoping to reach $8,000 or $9,000," he said.
Some members of his team, which he said includes many participants with friends or family members affected by Parkinson's, will swim, bike and run the entire course.
Others will be part of three-person triads in which each member will tackle one segment of the race. Two of those teams are composed of children 12 or younger, Bucklew said. Both Bucklew and his 12-year-old daughter, Madeleine, belong to one of about eight relay triads and both will take the plunge as swimmers, he said.
"Last year the water was so cold, so getting people to do the swimming has been the hardest thing," he said.
Bucklew said those interested in raising money to fight Parkinson's can do so in many ways.
"For anybody who's affected in any way by the disease, finding some way to get involved (in the fight against Parkinson's) brings tremendous meaning into life, whether that's by taking part in a triathlon or through other methods," he said.
He said people can still join his team, either by contacting him at 773-263-5026 or wbucklew@gmail.com.
To learn more about Parkinson's disease or to donate money for Parkinson's research, visit www.michaeljfox.org.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/wilmette/news/ct-wml-bucklew-triathlon-team-tl-0908-20160906-story.html
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