Get ready for Purple Day on March 26, 2011

In 2008 Cassidy Megan, a little girl with epilepsy, came up with a colorful idea to raise epilepsy awareness. Her goal was, and still is, to get people talking about epilepsy in hopes that this would dispel myths and inform those with seizures that they are not alone. This little girl’s idea has become a global phenomenon and on March 26 you have a chance to participate.

Purple Day goes global
The Epilepsy Association of Nova Scotia came on board in 2008 to help develop Cassidy’s idea. Then in 2009, the New York-based Anita Kaufmann Foundation and Epilepsy Association of Nova Scotia came together to take Purple Day to the international community. This nine-year-old girl is proof that an idea can become an international movement.

Purple Day 2011

Planning for Purple Day 2011 is now underway. For more information on how you can get involved, visit the Purple Day website. There are ideas, posters, t-shirts, earrings and more. All proceeds support the Global Purple Day Planning Committee’s continued epilepsy awareness initiatives!

Purple tweets
Another way you can participate is to send a tweet that reads: “Visit http://www.purpleday.org to learn more about #epilepsy.”

Questions?

If you have a suggestion or question for the Purple Day people? Email them at partners@purpleday.org.

Let us know what you are doing for Purple Day.

Jessica K. Smith Founder and CEO; Executive Director

Jessica Keenan Smith is a patient advocate and epilepsy community leader with more than 15 years of experience. As Founder and CEO of Living Well With Epilepsy and Executive Director of ASENT she bridges the gap between the scientific and patient communities, with a particular focus on the needs of the epilepsies. Jessica Keenan Smith is Founder and CEO of Living Well With Epilepsy, an award winning online resource for people affected by epilepsy to share stories and access in-depth information on the disease. Since 2009, Living Well With Epilepsy (https://livingwellwithepilepsy.com) has been featured in Forbes, Wired, NBC, NPR and the cover story of Epilepsy Advocate Magazine and has partnered with companies such as UCB, Lundbeck, Sunovion, Eisai, and more. Ms. Smith is also the Executive Director of the American Society for Experimental Neurotherapeutics (ASENT) (https://asent.org), an organization that brings together leaders from industry, academia, government and advocacy who are engaged in bringing drugs and devices to market across all neurologic disease states. In this role she is responsible for leading a successful scientific journal and annual scientific conference with speakers from all over the world.

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