The Saskatchewan Brain Injury Association (SBIA) is bringing back the Brain Boogie walk to an in-person event to raise money and awareness for brain injuries.
The Brain Boogie is a series of walks, in various communities to raise donations for SBIA. The walk is usually around 1 km long, in an area that is wheelchair accessible. Many of the organization’s members join in the walk, and the this year’s walk will be held on Sunday, August 28, 2022, at Crescent Park in Moose Jaw, starting at the amphitheatre.
After the walk, there will be a lunch sponsored by Safeway for participants that registered and paid the registration fee. Registration is not required for the walk although it is appreciated. If you wish to partake in the lunch and receive a bonus t-shirt, a $40 registration fee is required.
If you want to participate but will not be able to make it to one of the events, then the SBIA encourages you to join in virtually. To do this, all you must do is take a picture of yourself going on your walk or run, post it to social media, and tag the SBIA.
"Well, we are a provincial organization whose headquarters is in Moose Jaw, which doesn’t happen every day. We are both local and provincial, but the provincial office that is here has been here since I have been with the organization for a dozen years. This is very much an organization that has an impact on Moose Jaw," says Glenda James, the Executive Director of the Brain Injury Association.
Over the summer, you may have noticed some communities already partaking in their Brain Boogie. This is due to a partnership between the SBIA and the Saskatchewan Royal Purple Provincial Association (SRPPA). This partnership saw communities with an SRPPA lodge participate in the Brain Boogie in May to collaborate with National Purple Week.
During the pandemic, the SBIA realized that holding these events would be exceedingly difficult with some of the mandates. This is when they decided to change the event slightly to work with COVID mandates and with modifications made in 2020, participants took pictures and videos of them learning a type of dance, posting it on social media and tagging the SBIA.
"I want to remind people that brain injury can happen to absolutely anyone, anytime, anywhere,” says Glenda.
The Brain Boogie was started in 2002 by a young mother who at the time had experienced a brain injury. The mother was looking for programs she could join, but she was told by the old SBIA Executive Director that they had no money for that. This young mother decided to do something about her lack of funds and programs by starting the Brain Boogie, with their first event being held in Regina. That makes this the 20th anniversary of the Brain Boogie.
The SBIA is a grassroots organization that was started by brain injury survivors and their families in 1985. This organization started as a support system for people living with brain injuries during a time when there was a significant lack of resources for those individuals. This association works with brain injury survivors and their families from the moment of injury, providing information, service advocacy, referrals to support groups, and educational programs.
To learn more about the SBIA visit their website at http://www.sbia.ca/default.aspx.
To learn more about Brain Boogie visit their website at https://www.brainboogie.ca/saskatchewan/.
