We are really excited that our six-year-old son, Eric, was chosen as one of 7,000 "Difference Makers" across Canada to carry the Rick Hansen medal in a cross-country relay in celebration of the 25th anniversary of Rick Hansen's Man in Motion World Tour. We are all very excited about this, especially Eric. Not only was Eric singled out as a Difference Maker, but he also gets the honour of being the youngest Medal Bearer in the whole cross-country relay! Eric's leg of the relay was sponsored by Invacare Canada, a home healthcare company who hand-picked Eric as the Difference Maker for one of their three sponsored legs of the relay across the country. Eric was selected by Invacare after learning about how hard he works and the impact he has had on the way those around him look at people with disabilities and at accessibility issues.
You are all invited to come on out and cheer Eric on, or run with him as he carries the medal for 250 m from the Sussex Elementary School Sports Field (where he will be receiving it from the previous Medal Bearer who will be carrying it in a hot air balloon!) out to the corner of Main Street and Essex Street.
Eric's leg of the relay is scheduled to start at 9:20 AM on Sunday, October 2 at the Sussex Elementary School Sports Field. He is Medal Bearer number MB040-002 and there will be a sign with that number on it marking his starting point.
Here is some more information about the Relay:
A video from the Rick Hansen Foundation about the 25th Anniversary Relay:
A video from the Rick Hansen Foundation about the 25th Anniversary Relay:
A video about the Rick Hansen Medal:
The notice on the Town of Sussex website about the Relay: http://www.sussex.ca/content/249101
On the day before Eric's leg of the run, the Relay will arrive in Sussex, and there will also be a brief ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday at 3:15 PM at O'Connell Park to officially open the new accessible playground equipment that the town has installed. Our family will be there for this ceremony, so feel free to join us to celebrate the fact that our town is recognizing the need for public places to be accessible to everyone in town!
We hope to see you on Sunday morning!
