Photo from 2025 Peace in the Park hosted by the Thumbs Up Foundation / Photo by Keith Driver
On a warm September afternoon, members of the city of Airdrie gathered at Nose Creek Park for the fourth annual Peace in the Park in celebration of mental health resilience and an opportunity for community resources to connect with residents.
The celebration organized by the Thumbs Up Foundation used the music’s therapeutic power to bring moments of peace to the worries of day-to-day life.
That peace of mind hits home for the Foundation’s Chair, Kim Titus, as the foundation marks 10 years since its creation. The message of mental health still holds, as an earlier interaction between herself and a member of the community talked about the recent loss of a loved one who died by suicide.
Titus said that bringing together community resources for the annual event is to help equip the community with tools, so they can seek and ask for help when they find themselves at an all-time low.
One of those tools is to know when to take a break for yourself and find a healthy outlet to find calm. This is especially true for parents with young, high-energy children who may need just five minutes to sit and de-stress.
At a shaded part of the park not far from the main stage, there was the “wellness lane,” which is designed to create a space for emotional regulation.
This can be done through sitting in a swing chair, colouring, or, as Stacey Perlin, Chair of the Perlin Foundation for Wellbeing, explains, a simple game of Jenga can help impact a person’s emotional regulation.
While the day brought a sense of connection and peace, it’s still important to know that, according to Statistics Canada, in 2023, nearly 12 per cent of Canadians have had thoughts of suicide in their lifetime. Suicide according also according to Stats Canada, is the second leading cause of death of people between the ages of 15 – 34.
Recourses can be found through Alberta 811 or through the AHS website
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