Inclusive festival hosts sensory-friendly market in Edmonton

People of all abilities were invited to a festival featuring a performance from the Braille Tones Choir and a market showcasing neurodivergent creators.

Edmonton’s Bison Lodge was home to an accessible festival on Saturday meant to welcome everyone of all abilities.

The Sensory Festival was created as a space for everyone regardless of background or ability, said director Louise Berezowsky.

“I have a neurodivergent daughter and a daughter with disabilities, and through my own lived experience I realize that there was a missing piece in the city to create a sense of belonging,” she said on Saturday.

Sensory Canada, a group created by Berezowski and her partner Paul, collaborates with and fundraises for a number of groups for people with disabilities: Autism Edmonton, Edmonton Association for the Deaf, Adaptabilities and the Braille Tones Choir.

The organization partnered with the Neurodiverse Community Market, created by Megan Sarko and Sarah Davies as a sensory-friendly local shopping experience, on Saturday.

The market space had two separate rooms to accommodate varying needs, one of which was a sensory area with weight blankets, pillows and quieter activities.

“Then upstairs, we have big activities, and we have our seeking room. So everybody who’s a socialite,” Sarko explained.

“We do try to cover something for everybody.”

Saturday’s event also included performances by the Braille Tones Choir.

Berezowsky said the event began more as a fundraising gala but transitioned to a festival format as a way to build community.

“People who are attending are very excited to connect with other individuals. Some of these people didn’t even know that some of these other supports existed in the city,” she said.

“It’s opening up an entire new world … growing spaces in our city that never existed before.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Galen McDougall