Champion for Charity Alicia Panetta eager to fight and fundraise for MacKids
By Jeff Hicks
WATERLOO —
Little Finnigan— fresh from blowing out four candles on his birthday cupcakes— danced around an imaginary ring in front of the Christmas tree.
His pink piggy costume only emboldened his nimble footwork.
Finnigan — whose middle name is Lennox in honour of the world champ from Kitchener, Lennox Lewis — looked adorably devastating in the blue-dinosaur boxing gloves Santa brought him.
His mom, Alicia Panetta, and his dad Mike smiled as he hammed it up for the holidays.
Boxing is about to punch its way into their family life.
Alicia, the contract and insurance specialist for Melloul-Blamey Construction, is one of Mandy Bujold’s 20 Champions for Charity who will step into the ring for the first time on April 24 at Tapestry Hall, built by her company, to raise money for MacKids.
“You are a pure wonder,” Alicia, who just turned 41, said to Finnigan.
Four years and a few months ago, Mike and Alicia wondered if all this was possible.
A genetic condition threatened Alicia’s pregnancy with Finnigan.
Some heavy genetic testing at McMaster Children’s Hospital was required to make sure all was OK with their first child. Mike and Alicia were worried.
“It was really scary to go through it all,” Alicia said. “The staff at McMaster were so kind and so incredible and so patient. They really helped put us at ease.”
MacKids even gave Alicia a heads-up that all was good, a week ahead of a test-results meeting at the hospital.
“That saved me seven days of sleep,” Alicia said.
Now, there is no time to snooze. Fifteen weeks of training is about to begin for Alicia, who has boxing in her blood.
Her grandfather Frank, now 94 and living in Niagara, used to box under the nickname Maxie.
Of course, the Max that inspired his nickname was more tomato can than two-fisted terror.
Still, it was to honour of Frank’s fighting history that Mike and Alicia gave Finnigan a champion’s middle name. Alicia, who got a stocking stuffed with Band-Aids for Christmas, needs a cool boxing nickname for her own fight night.
Perhaps her love for Ultimate Frisbee — a sport she took up with her RIM co-workers in her twenties — will spin a delightful nom de plume for the Blue Team fight card.
After all, she was a disc-flinging member of the Frisbeasts.
And Frank is always feeding her flowery nickname suggestions by text.
Alicia ‘Sweet Pea’ Panetta was one idea. Perhaps it lacked a little punch.
“I think I have to be a little meaner than a ‘Sweet Pea’, Pop,” she replied.
To Support Alicia, click here.
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