To help mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, the City came together with a number of other communities across Perth for the Purple Road project – a community art initiative aiming to raise awareness and education around the serious issue of elder abuse.
Craft groups and individual community members have been busy making a ‘road’ comprised of thousands of handmade purple flowers since August 2020, and yesterday these groups met to join everyone’s work together.
The project encouraged people to contribute handmade knitted and crocheted flowers, with each flower representing someone’s story and symbolising the prevention of elder abuse.
The City’s Yarn Club, alongside local volunteers, created a three metre long section which joined an impressive 30 metre piece at Kings Park yesterday.
The City’s contribution to the project was on display in Subiaco Library in November last year when Subiaco Yarn Club was presented with a certificate of recognition for their invaluable contribution to the important project.
Shenton Park’s Clickety Clack craft group and a number of individual community members also contributed hundreds of flowers to the project.
The State Government will light up several prominent buildings in purple for World Elder Abuse Awareness Day and the Purple Road will be on display outside Parliament House.
People are encouraged to contact the WA Elder Abuse Helpline and Information Service on 1300 724 679, which provides free confidential information and support, if they or someone they know are at risk of or experiencing elder abuse.
The Purple Road project is an initiative of the Northern Suburbs Community Legal Centre.