FERGUS – It won’t be long before people entering Fergus will know the town is the home of Paralympian Patrick Anderson.
Centre Wellington council, at a special meeting on April 27, unanimously supported a staff recommendation to install “home of” signs at the north and south entrances to Fergus after three Grade 7 students from Elora Public School delegated to council in February and made the request.
Lily Brown, Helena Kogen and Mya Hunt, along with their teacher Andy Speers, made the presentation to council in February and all but Kogen were present for the April 27 meeting.
Anderson spoke to students at Elora Public School last September and they were inspired by his story and motivated to do something to honour him.
Born in Edmonton, Anderson grew up in Fergus and seemed bound for a future in hockey when he was struck by a drunk driver when he was nine and lost his legs below the knee.
He started playing wheelchair basketball instead and there was no stopping the athlete, who quickly rose to be a leader on his team and is now considered by many to be the best wheelchair basketball player in the world.
He is a three-time Paralympic champion, a four-time medalist at the Paralympic Games and won the World Championship in 1998, 2002 and 2006.
He is also an accomplished musician and public speaker, and his message of hard work and overcoming challenges struck a chord with the students.
At the February meeting, council directed staff to do some research and see what it would take to erect the signs.
Patrick Anderson chases a loose ball during the Canada-U.S. gold medal game in wheelchair basketball at the Parapan Am Games in Lima, Peru on Aug. 31, 2019. Photo by Dave Holland
In his report to council on April 27, managing director of infrastructure services Colin Baker said the population signs at each entrance – a location suggested by the students – are owned by the Ministry of Transportation and it would be easier to install stand-alone signs on property within the township’s control – on St. David Street North at Sideroad 19 in the north end, and on Tower Street at MacQueen Boulevard at the south end of town.
In discussions, Baker also suggested to the girls to change the background colour of their sign design from red to blue as red signals an emergency, “and very quickly Andy and the students turned around and revised their design.
“Personally, I think it looks fantastic,” he said.
Speers told council that since the February presentation, Yard Weasles has offered to install the signposts for free and Print Factor has offered to donate the signs. So the cost to the township will be minimal if anything.
He said Anderson will be in the Fergus area in May and suggested May 20 would be a good date for the unveiling.
While staff said they will be involved in that ceremony, Speers asked if the students could take the lead on that as well.
“I’m so proud of them,” he said. “It’s amazing what kids can do when you give them the opportunity.”
The township will figure out the exact location of the signs and work out a timeline with the students and the two businesses.
In a phone interview from their school on April 28, Brown said she believes if Anderson was an Olympian without a disability, he would already have been honoured with signage.
That was a wrong she felt strongly needed to be righted.
It was her idea to post the signs, and she submitted the notion into the school’s “idea factory.”
“I didn’t think it would go anywhere, but Mr. Speers liked the idea and other students joined in and now here we are,” she said.
“That ‘yes’ yesterday was really nice to hear. And hopefully there will be signs up by the end of May.”
Hunt said she’s learned a lot about how local government works, how schedules are made, and how stressful it can be to present to council.
She called it a “journey” that started with Anderson’s presentation to the students.
“He was really awesome and he really deserves this,” Hunt said.
Both girls said they were treated seriously and respectfully by all government officials every step of the way.
“And we’re lucky how fast we got this,” Brown acknowledged.
Michelle Youngblood, another teacher at Elora Public School, said students at the school have taken action on inclusion and equity issues before, so this was not a stretch.
“We try to teach the students that when you have a voice, you should speak on behalf of people who don’t have a voice,” said Youngblood.
“I think what they learned here is that it’s possible for young people to have a voice and to be heard.”
In a phone interview, Anderson said he’s flattered and honoured by the recognition, but he also downplayed his own accomplishments.
“My story is about how the community rallied around a kid and family who needed help,” he said.
“People donated money to help us. Teachers and school administrators made adaptive things for me to play sports. That allowed me to flourish.
“The fact that my story resonates makes me proud to be a member of a very successful basketball team.
“I’m proud to stake the Canadian flag in the basketball world.”
Anderson said he hopes to motivate people with disabilities in his public talks and always spreads the word about the Paralympics.
“The Paralympics are not on people’s radar, but in Centre Wellington they are,” he said.
Anderson said he recently decided to play with Team Canada for another year and is currently training with the team.
But he hopes to be in Fergus for the unveiling.
“This is just another reason I’m proud to be from Fergus,” he said.
