Epilepsy Support Centre

The first meeting in London regarding epilepsy took place on October 24th, 1966 at the home of a couple whose child was affected. 10 years later in 1976, the organization, now known as the Epilepsy Support Centre, began. Initially the organization was closely affiliated with Epilepsy Ontario. The very small organization only had enough money to hire two staff members, an executive director and the other being a field worker. Financing the organization was a struggle and things progressed slowly. In 1983, The Epilepsy Support Centre took a big step when it passed its first constitution. With very little in donated funds, raising money was always a major concern, and became critical when Epilepsy Ontario withdrew its funding in 1981. In 1982, the London Community Foundation donated $3000 to help further the organization. Progress was starting to show and in 1983 the agency received its first grant from the United Way. The organization started running fundraisers to boost their revenue as well. These fundraisers included golf tournaments, casino nights, and bingo nights; some of which still exist today. They also started to gain publicity with a parachute jump on the grounds of Parkwood Hospital to kick off Glad Days in 1987. The Epilepsy Support Centre is a non-profit United Way funded organization that is specifically concerned with the non-medical welfare of people with epilepsy. Our goal is to enable people with epilepsy to fully participate in all aspects of community life. Our services are available in London-Middlesex, Sarnia-Lambton, Elgin, Chatham-Kent, Oxford and Windsor/Essex counties.