It’s official — March is Easter Seals Month here in Peterborough.
This morning, Wednesday, March 3, Peterborough Mayor Jeff Leal read the proclamation, which marks the beginning of a series of events and fundraisers around the city in support of Easter Seals Ontario.
The event saw local dignitaries, such as MPP Dave Smith and Mayor Leal, join Easter Seals and their local business partners, namely the Peterborough Petes and Boston Pizza, at Lansdowne Place to inaugurate the seasonal events.
Residents can look forward to two in-person events as well as the 54th installment of the annual Peterborough Easter Seals Telethon. The dates, locations and hours are as follows:
- Boston Pizza Celebrity Event on March 8 with Kris King, Petes and Maple Leafs alumni
- Peterborough Petes Alumni Celebrity Hockey Classic on March 12
- The 54th Peterborough Easter Seals Telethon airing live March 22 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on YourTV and Global Peterborough
At the event, Development Manager for Easter Seals Central Ontario Charlene Myke said these are the sorts of events that change the lives of their youth.
When it comes to Peterborough, Myke says the city’s residents are a different sort when they support causes for those in need; she says locals always seem to help those with their hands up.
Charlene often meets the families with Easter Seals support, which often means encountering families under unique circumstances.
Seven-and-a-half-year-old Zoe Gibbons was diagnosed with Congenital Disorder of Glycosylation (CDG), type IIm. It is described as a rare congenital disorder characterized by profound global developmental delay, early epileptic encephalopathy and muscular hypotonia.
In fact, Zoe is the 49th person in the world diagnosed with this condition.
Zoe’s mom, Sarah-Lynne Gibbons, says Easter Seals has made a huge impact on Zoe’s development. Through financial support from Easter Seals, Zoe was able to receive her own Tobii Dynavox device, which allows a tablet to speak for Zoe with specialized eye-scanning technology to translate words through vision alone.
Gibbons says it is one of the biggest reasons she is grateful for the support.
She went on to say she and Zoe will continue their trail of advocacy to change the future for anybody in a similar circumstance.
(Written by: Noah Lorusso)
