Author Archives: DHamel

Osler scholarship recipient says Purple Day founder has been an inspiration

September 11, 2017

By Deron Hamel

Sarah Picotte says Cassidy Megan has been an important source of inspiration in her life.

Cassidy was just nine years old when she launched the first Purple Day to raise worldwide epilepsy awareness on March 26, 2008. Sarah is the same age Cassidy, and like Cassidy, she is also living with epilepsy.

Sarah Picotte, one of the five recipients of this year’s Osler Epilepsy Scholarship, is seen here holding her award alongside Epilepsy Ontario executive director Paul Raymond and Epilepsy Ottawa executive director Nikki Porter.

And also like Cassidy, Sarah has refused to let epilepsy control her life. A recent graduate of Rideau High School in Ottawa, Sarah is enrolled in the developmental services worker program at Algonquin College. She hopes to work with children with special needs after she completes her post-secondary education.

“Cassidy has shown me that I can face epilepsy and just deal with it,” says Sarah, who had her first seizure when she was just 13 months old. “She just wants to help people, and that’s what I want to do.”

To date, Sarah has put in more than 260 volunteer hours in her community. She notes how Cassidy has spent much of the past nine years travelling the world to educate others about epilepsy, which has also been inspirational to Sarah.

The two young women even met on Purple Day 2014 in Ottawa, where they had a chance to talk and go skating together.

“Cassidy’s life has shown me that someone with epilepsy can do anything they set their mind to,” Sarah says. “(Cassidy) hasn’t let epilepsy ruin her life, and I won’t let it ruin my life either.”

Sarah is one of the recipients of this year’s Osler Epilepsy Scholarship. The $1,500 scholarship, formerly called the OBCL Epilepsy Scholarship, is being offered to five students this year.

Osler Epilepsy Scholarships are awarded each year to exceptional students who have confronted and overcome remarkable barriers in their academic and personal lives due to their epilepsy.

Applicants also submit an essay about how epilepsy has impacted their lives as well as an outline of their future plans.

If you have feedback on this story, or have a story of your own that you would like to share, please contact the newsroom at deron(at)axiomnews.com.

Epilepsy diagnoses motivates student ‘to leap further and work harder’

August 31, 2017

By Deron Hamel

Mackenzie Fast says being diagnosed with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy has only made her work harder towards her goals in life.

Mackenzie Fast, one of the five recipients of this year’s Osler Epilepsy Scholarship, is seen here holding her award alongside Epilepsy Ontario executive director Paul Raymond.

Mackenzie, who graduated from St. Joseph’s Catholic High School in St. Thomas, Ont., in June, will soon be starting her first year of studies at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo. She has her sights set on pursuing a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology and following up with either a master’s degree in the subject or a law degree.

The honours student was diagnosed with a seizure disorder when she returned to Canada after living in Fiji for her Grade 11 year. While she says her diagnosis at first caused her stress, she has learned to adapt and move forward.

“This challenge only encouraged me to leap further and work harder,” Mackenzie says.

In addition to her academic achievements, Mackenzie is also involved with athletics and has been involved with swimming, soccer and cross-country running since a young age.

She is also active in her community in many ways. She participates in charity runs, city road races and volunteers as a youth swim coach and fitness advocate. This, she says, has helped her learn the values of teamwork and dedication.

“By grasping academic, co-curricular and community-based opportunities, I have learned to tackle obstacles with determination, enthusiasm and mindfulness; allowing myself, my future and those in my path to prosper,” Mackenzie says.

Mackenzie is one of the recipients of this year’s Osler Epilepsy Scholarship. The $1,500 scholarship, formerly called the OBCL Epilepsy Scholarship, is being offered to five students this year.

Osler Epilepsy Scholarships are awarded each year to exceptional students who have confronted and overcome remarkable barriers in their academic and personal lives due to their epilepsy.

Applicants also submit an essay about how epilepsy has impacted their lives as well as an outline of their future plans.

If you have feedback on this story, or have a story of your own that you would like to share, please contact the newsroom at deron(at)axiomnews.com.

On the Edge director Louis Stanislaw publishes book about people’s first-hand experiences with epilepsy

July 17, 2017

By Deron Hamel

A new book compiled and illustrated by U.S. filmmaker Louis Stanislaw is a collection of in-depth, reflective essays about what it’s like to live with epilepsy, told by people who have the condition.

The book, Voices From the Heart: Lifting the Veil on Epilepsy, contains more than 30 first-hand accounts of the struggles people living with seizure disorders face, how the condition impacts their lives and how they have coped with having a seizure disorder.

Stanislaw has lived with epilepsy his whole life. On his website, Stanislaw says living with epilepsy made him feel “isolated” from others when he was growing up. But once he started talking about living with epilepsy, he felt better.

“I never wanted to talk about (living with epilepsy) with anyone outside my family until I went to college, where I made a few good friends,” he says. “When I did confide in them, and they accepted me just as I am, I felt an enormous sense of relief.”

Since completing college, Stanislaw has been dedicated to helping other people tell their stories about living with epilepsy.

Voices From the Heart is the second project Stanislaw has created to shine light on how epilepsy affects people. In 2013, he wrote and directed On the Edge, a documentary about the painful truths, misunderstandings and difficulties of living with epilepsy at every turn; from family life and school to leaving home and starting a career and forming lasting bonds.

Epilepsy Ontario hosted the Canadian premiere of On the Edge in Toronto in November 2013.

Like Voices From the Heart, On the Edge is a collection of personal stories from people living with seizure disorders.

Perhaps most importantly, the book and film put faces to the condition, which is meant to inject a better sense of empathy into those reading the book or watching the documentary.

Voices From the Heart has received critical acclaim.

“Voices From the Heart will inspire, stretch and move you in your own life as you touch in these pages the courage and conviction of people with epilepsy and their families,” writes Ronald Heifetz, founder of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

“Many of us struggle with the reality that we live in a world beyond our control, and we can learn profound lessons about our own lives from people who live and work with this reality every day.”

If you would like more information about Voices From the Heart, including details on how to order a copy, please click here.

If you have feedback on this story, or have a story of your own that you would like to share, please contact the newsroom at deron(at)axiomnews.com.

Toronto boy raises $7K through bake sale to send 4 kids to Summerfest Camp

June 15, 2017

By Deron Hamel

A Toronto boy has raised more than $7,000 with a bake sale he spearheaded to send four children living with epilepsy to Summerfest Camp.

Nine-year-old Brody is seen here delivering a cheque for “over seven thousand” dollars to Epilepsy Ontario executive director Paul Raymond. Brody raised the money with a bake sale in March. The money will help send four children with epilepsy to Summerfest Camp.

Nine-year-old Brody, who was diagnosed with epilepsy last September, told his mother, Tammy Baruch, he wanted to do something in recognition of Purple Day, the international day of epilepsy awareness, on March 26.

He first suggested a lemonade stand, but with March’s cool temperatures, Brody and Tammy decided a bake sale might be a better idea. Since baking is something the family already enjoyed, it was a perfect fit, Tammy says.

Tammy then sent e-mails to the family’s friends and relatives, explaining they were having a bake sale to raise money to send children with epilepsy to Summerfest Camp. Everyone was given a week to place their orders for cookies and muffins, which were made by Tammy, Brody and Brody’s sister, Charlie.

But within 24 hours, Tammy had to stop accepting orders; there were too many to fill.

“We couldn’t take any more orders because at that point we had received orders for over 100 dozen cookies and different things. We thanked people for their support, but I would have been baking until the new year, basically,” Tammy chuckles.

Still, many of the family’s friends and relatives wanted to support Brody’s fundraiser, so a lot of people made donations.

Going into its 23rd year, Summerfest Camp has an average of 20 to 40 children and youths who have epilepsy attend the program. While at the camp, the children participate in activities such as swimming, hiking, kayaking and sports.

Summerfest Camp, which is held at Camp Couchiching near Orillia, enables children aged six to 15 who are living with seizure disorders to attend camp with other children. The camp provides a setting where children can relax and have a good time.

Brody says he wants to do another fundraiser for Epilepsy Ontario next year.

“Next year we don’t know what we’re going to do, but we’re thinking about doing a little walk around the neighbourhood selling some of our baked cookies,” Brody says.

Tammy adds that Brody plans to up the ante for next year’s fundraiser.

“I’m going to have to start baking now,” she laughs, “because next year he wants to send seven kids to camp.”

If you have feedback on this story, or have a story of your own that you would like to share, please contact the newsroom at 1-800-294-0051, ext. 23, or e-mail deron(at)axiomnews.com.