Chalky Carr the TRUE Ironman

I only knew my old mate for 6 years before he lost his hard fought battle with Pancreatic Cancer.

His fight was tough and he never gave up! No one ever prepares one self for such an ordeal yet he took the illness head on and with an attitude that those who knew him would have expected. At a time when he was "hurting" he thought of others....his boys (Josh & Jamie), his beautiful wife (Sarah) and others dealing with Cancer.

It has been 3 years since his passing and we miss him dearly. This weekend I will be doing the "mahi" in the NZ Ironman but this is nothing compared to the "grit and strength" shown by my mate in his battle with pancreatic cancer!

THE CHALKY CARR TRUST

Kevin 'Chalky' Carr was a former Royal Marine Commando, Chalky was working as a Lieutenant Commander for the Royal New Zealand Navy at HMNZS Pegasus in Montreal St when the deadly February 22 earthquake struck. Heading into the city to do what he could to help, he was subsequently awarded the New Zealand Bravery Medal by the Governor-General for his "selfless actions and leadership that saved many lives and had a major impact on the outcome of the rescue efforts at the CTV building".

A lifelong rugby fan, he subsequently got a job with the All Blacks as their logistics manager and was on tour with the team in June 2016 when he fell ill and was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Chalky thought he’d kicked his "rust" into touch but sadly lost that battle in January 2018.

In Chalky's words "I don't want sympathy. I want to do something productive and meaningful while I can – and for me that’s helping someone else impacted by cancer. One thing that kept me going was there was always someone worse off than me. Even when I was in the darkest depths of horrid chemotherapy, I felt I was incredibly lucky to be in the position I am."

Chalky created the Chalky Carr Trust which is raising money to help people who are bound together by a cancer experience in a very practical way.