Community leaders needed to “switch chairs for a day” in support of CPA (Alberta) and Calgary Health Trust
CALGARY– The second annual Chair-Leaders Enabling Access Event in support of the Canadian Paraplegic Association (Alberta) and Calgary Health Trust will see community leaders inCalgary“switch chairs for a day” on Friday, May 4, opting to take a seat in a wheelchair rather than a desk chair. The event will help participants gain first-hand experience about the accessibility and mobility obstacles those with disabilities face on a daily basis.
Participants will go through their entire day in a wheelchair. The event will begin with an obstacle course race at Calgary Rotary Challenger Park at 8:30 a.m.Three-time Olympian, five-time Paralympian and six-time World Champion Jeff Adams will deliver a motivational speech before all participants are loaded onto Handi-Buses to be shuttled off to their workplace for the day.
"Through my work, I’ve had the pleasure of working with persons whom rely on a wheelchair for mobility. This left me with the assumption that I understood the barriers in our environment, but it was the wrong assumption,” explains Teren Clark, CPA Executive Director. “Spending a day in a chair while conducting my usual work made me realize I had much to learn about barriers in my community. I am really excited to participate in the event again this year.”
CPA Alberta and Calgary Health Trust are looking for media personalities and local community leaders to participate in the event on May 4 to raise awareness about the issues surrounding mobility, independence and neuro rehabilitation inCalgary. Calgary Health Trust CEO Sally Flintoft will be among those participating in the event.
“I encourage my colleagues inCalgary’s business community to join me in switching chairs for the day on May 4,” says Sally Flintoft, CEO, Calgary Health Trust. “Not only will this experience challenge me personally, but it will also help raise funds to support the Neuro Rehabilitation Program at Foothills Medical Centre and CPA Alberta’s programs and services.”
Funds raised from the 2012 event will be shared between the Canadian Paraplegic Association (Alberta) to expand and enhance its programs and services and Calgary Health Trust in support of the Tertiary Neuro Rehabilitation Program at Foothills Medical Centre, which serves patients and families from southern Alberta to interior British Columbia and western Saskatchewan.
For more information about participating in the event, contact Cal Schuler, Community Development Coordinator at CPA Alberta, at 403-228-7419. For more information on event details, visit www.calgaryhealthtrust.ca/chairleaders.
Calgary Health Trust connects donor passions with health care needs. Together we are touching lives in our community every day by raising funds for enhanced technology, programs and services at the Foothills Medical Centre, Peter Lougheed Centre, Rockyview General Hospital, Women’s Health, Carewest continuing care centres and other community health programs and facilities. For information on Calgary Health Trust, visit www.calgaryhealthtrust.ca.
The Canadian Paraplegic Association (Alberta) was founded in 1961. Since then, it has been a leader in offering support, direct service, information and advocacy to Albertans with spinal cord injuries and other physical disabilities. Whether it be assisting a newly spinal cord injured child or adult, lobbying for better public transportation, or helping to create a more inclusive community, CPA (Alberta) embraces the approach that there is more than one way. For more information, visit www.cpa-ab.org.
For media inquiries, contact:
Calgary Health Trust
Nanica Brown, Communications Advisor
W: 403-943-0900
E: nanica.brown@calgaryhealthtrust.ca
CPA (Alberta) - Calgary Office
Cal Schuler, Community Development Coordinator
W: 403-228-7419
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