PURPLE DAY MARCH 26

 

PURPLE DAY

MARCH 26

Purple Day is an international grassroots effort dedicated to increasing awareness about epilepsy worldwide. On March 26th annually.

It is aimed at raising worldwide awareness of epilepsy, a condition that affects over 65 million people globally. It is a neurological condition that causes seizures and often begins in childhood, epilepsy is sometimes misunderstood which can lead to difficulty in social situations.

The idea of Purple Day is to provide education to those who don’t understand the condition, as well as for those who have epilepsy to recognize that they are not alone. Because lavender is the international colour for epilepsy and is also a colour that symbolizes solitude, it only made sense that purple would be the colour of choice for this important day of recognition and awareness.

Cassidy Megan, a nine-year-old from Canada, founded Purple Day in 2008 when she was motivated by her own struggle with epilepsy. Purple Day is a grassroots celebration that is aimed at raising worldwide awareness of epilepsy, a condition that affects over 65 million people globally. the Anita Kaufmann Foundation of New York, and the day eventually became an international event.

In fact, Purple Day’s popularity grew quickly! The celebration in 2009, the second year of its existence, brought at least 100,00 students, 95 workplaces, and 116 politicians out to participate in the day’s festivities.

From there the day simply kept growing. It’s hard to believe that only 10 years later, in 2019, Purple Day had made its way to Disney World! Sponsored by the Epilepsy Foundation of Central Florida, Purple Day shared the magic with many participants. The day’s founder, Cassidy Megan, made a special appearance (wearing a purple evening gown, of course) and became good friends with Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

Now, Purple Day is celebrated on every continent and in over 100 countries, in places such as India, Australia, South Africa, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Of notable importance, however, is the fact that the only nation whose government officially recognizes this day currently is Canada, which was put into effect with the Purple Day Act on June 28, 2012.Purple Day

Celebrating this day is not only fun, but is also important in raising awareness for this challenging neurological disorder. Try out these ideas or be creative with others ideas to help the cause:

People who would like to celebrate by wearing an official purple t-shirt for the day.

Prof. John Kurakar

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