International FASD Awareness Day will again be recognized in Grande Prairie with a free pancake breakfast. From 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. on Friday, September 8th, pancakes will be served with juice and coffee at the Muskoseepi Park Pavilion.
Along with breakfast, the event is also an opportunity to learn more about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and services offered for people living with it and their caregivers. Northwest Alberta FASD Service Network Coordinator Gwen Vekved says the goal is to educate, raise awareness, and show support.
“It is important to recognize that we can help mothers to abstain from alcohol during the entire term of pregnancy.”
The day of awareness is held every year on the ninth day of the ninth month to mark the nine months of pregnancy when a woman should stop drinking. FASD is the leading known cause of preventable developmental disability in Canada, and it’s estimated there are at least 46,000 Albertans living with the disorder.