Local man aids Washburn cancer victim
By Kathy McCarty
PRESQUE ISLE — Adam MacDonald, who suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, is lending his fund-raising skills to assist an Aroostook County youth battling cancer.
“While we were out last month putting up flyers at local businesses about his 25th birthday party/fundraiser, we learned about a young girl in Aroostook County that has cancer. Her uncle owns the redemption center on the Washburn Road. He takes returnable bottles and cans to help raise funds for his niece,” said Cheryl Markey, MacDonald’s mother.
After hearing about another person in need, MacDonald decided to offer his help in raising funds for the child.
“Adam has started saving all of our returnables for Rachel Driscoll (daughter of Marci and Dale Driscoll of Washburn). His grandmother, Evelyn Morris, has also started giving us her returnables for Rachel,” said Markey.
According to Markey, her son wants to “make his efforts to help Rachel on a much larger scale by asking his friends and family to give him their returnables, so he can bring them to the redemption center and donate them to help her.”
MacDonald is also urging residents to take their personal empties to Presque Isle Redemption and earmark the refund for Rachel’s fund.
Though only small ways to help others, MacDonald has managed to keep his goodwill, knowing that “it’s better to help others in need, even when you are in need yourself,” said his mother.
“Adam has decided that all the returnable cans and soda donated by Coke and all the returnable bottles of water donated by Bradley’s for the upcoming spaghetti dinner on Nov. 19 will be donated to Rachel and all the can tabs will be going to the Ronald McDonald House in Bangor,” explained Markey.
MacDonald’s plans also include contacting schools and youth groups to collect returnables for Driscoll, with help from his mother.
Driscoll’s uncle, Mike Bouchard, is impressed by MacDonald.
“It’s neat to see someone else with their own issues taking the time to help someone else,” said Bouchard. “Adam’s an amazing young man.”
