After a two-year COVID hiatus, Catch the Cure’s annual Paddle for Parkinson’s race returned to the Corpus Christi area with a new location – and anchor sponsor, LyondellBasell Corpus Christi Complex, for 2022.
The race, historically held on Padre Island, consists of a two and a half mile course that participants complete in a kayak, canoe or stand-up paddle-board. While stormy weather made this year’s course more difficult, many paddlers were able to complete the race – including the Corpus Christi site team.
Mike Middleton, LyondellBasell Corpus Christi Complex site manager, expressed his pride for the 13 employees and family members who dove into the competition in support of finding a cure for the chronic disease.
“The weather made it a memorable day, but like this resilient community we’re proud to support – the race carried on,” said Middleton. “Our employees are dedicated to making a difference where we live and work through our commitment to advancing our communities.”
Event founder Crystal Ybanez, who started Paddle for Parkinson’s to help her father when he was diagnosed, said the weather conditions mirror the fight people with the disease face daily.
“It’s something that people with Parkinson’s have to deal with every day and, you know, just including the shaking of their boats and their kayaks that they were in,” Ybanez said. “It definitely represents the tremors that people feel every single day and the struggles that they do just get through walking a distance or doing daily activities.”
Since 2017, the event has raised over $155,000 for Parkinson’s Disease support and research.
