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Quesnel bridges the epilepsy awareness gap

Fraser River Footbridge part of provincewide purple power
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The Fraser River Footbridge was one of dozens of sites across the province to light up purple for epilepsy awareness. (Tracey Roberts photo - Quesnel Cariboo Observer)

The province turned violety, on March 26, and the Fraser River Footbridge was Quesnel’s main point of purple.

Landmarks across B.C. were lit up in the colour of Epilepsy Awareness Month. In Prince George, it was Mr. PG; in Williams Lake it was City Hall; in Victoria it was the Parliament buildings. The most iconic ediface in our city is also one where the public can get right into the awareness action by walking through the timely tinting.

“Founded in 2008 by then nine-year-old Cassidy Megan, the purpose of International Purple Day for Epilepsy Awareness is to show people living with epilepsy in every community around the world that we are not alone,” said Sonia Ali, provincial manager of programs and services for the BC Epilepsy Society.

“Every year on International Purple Day for Epilepsy Awareness, people in countries all over the world wear purple and participate in events and activities dedicated to raising epilepsy awareness in their communities. Buildings and landmarks in countries around the world also light up purple in support of epilepsy awareness.”

Megan, a Nova Scotia kid now in her early 20s, said “I started Purple Day to raise awareness for people with epilepsy and to let them know that they aren’t alone. At Purple Day, we want to educate people about what to do and what not to do when they see someone having any type of seizure because there are a lot of seizure types and they all need to be recognized. Today, Purple Day is celebrated all around the world in over 100 countries.”

More than 45 sites in B.C. will either dress their staff in purple clothes or dress their site in purple light.

READ MORE: Epilepsy leaves a mark in Quesnel

READ MORE: Rotary honours epilepsyQuesnel founder Natasha Wasmuth



Frank Peebles

About the Author: Frank Peebles

I started my career with Black Press Media fresh out of BCIT in 1994, as part of the startup of the Prince George Free Press, then editor of the Lakes District News.
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