PURPLE POWER!
Children learn about epilepsy on colourful charity day
A TEACHING assistant whose 11-year-old daughter suffers from epilepsy has been helping other schoolchildren understand the condition.
Pupils at St John’s CE Primary School, in Trent Vale, were invited to wear their favourite purple outfit in return for a £1 donation towards The Daisy Garland Charity.
It coincided with national Epilepsy Awareness Day.
The event was organised by Lisa Paskin, whose daughter Evie has drug-resistant epilepsy and has suffered from seizures since the age of two. Last year, the youngster switched to a sugar-free ketogenic diet to help her condition.
Mum Lisa, from Blythe Bridge, said: “We wanted to do something to celebrate and raise money and awareness.
“My friend Laura Salt and I decided to start raising money for The Daisy Garland Charity. Throughout March, we’ve been doing a sugar-free challenge. We’ve managed to get a few local businesses on board, and of course, the school as well.”
While higher level teaching assistant Lisa was spreading the word at work, young Evie was doing her own assembly at her own school, The William Amory Primary, in Blythe Bridge.
Her mum said: “Evie is brilliant and she loves telling people all about epilepsy and spreading the word.”
For Lisa, the most important thing about this year’s Purple Day was raising awareness.
She added: “We’ve got posters everywhere.
“Across the school, the children have been learning about epilepsy, from simpler videos being shown to early years and foundation stage pupils, to more advanced things for Year 6 pupils.
“One in 20 people will have a seizure in their life, and it can be a really scary thing if you don’t know anything about it.
“It’s an invisible illness, so it’s really important for us to educate children and their parents, especially in the school community.”
St John’s is now planning to make The Daisy Garland one of the school’s chosen charities.
Headteacher Susan Bowyer said: “We’ve managed to raise money for the charity which is brilliant, but we’ve also been able to teach pupils about epilepsy.”
■ You can support Lisa’s fundraising on The Daisy Garland charity’s website.