Yoga event puts mental health awareness on mat

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A year after the death of Leroy Adams, his friend Jody Zarn is honouring him the best way she knows how: with a fitness-based fundraiser.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 31/10/2022 (1126 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A year after the death of Leroy Adams, his friend Jody Zarn is honouring him the best way she knows how: with a fitness-based fundraiser.

Zarn is the brains behind Team Leroy Yoga Day, which takes place Nov. 12 at the University of Winnipeg Axworthy Health and RecPlex. The event will raise funds for the Lighthouse Mission and spread awareness about mental health issues and homelessness.

Adams died Nov. 9, 2021. A former hospitality industry worker and checkers champion who was enthusiastic about fitness, Adams experienced homelessness for much of the last 15 years of his life.

REBECCA SCHROEDER / RED PHOTO CO.
                                Jody Zarn, is organizing a yoga event on Nov. 5 that will raise money for people experiencing homelessness. Zarn was inspired to organize this event after befriending Leroy Adams, who was living on the streets when they met. Adams died on Nov. 9, 2021.

REBECCA SCHROEDER / RED PHOTO CO.

Jody Zarn, is organizing a yoga event on Nov. 5 that will raise money for people experiencing homelessness. Zarn was inspired to organize this event after befriending Leroy Adams, who was living on the streets when they met. Adams died on Nov. 9, 2021.

“It was important to Leroy to be a contributor and help others,” Zarn says. “In honouring him, we can also do something good in his name and help the homeless community.”

Born in Guyana in 1954, and raised in Barbados, Adams immigrated to Canada in 1980. He worked in the hospitality industry and studied psychology at the University of Winnipeg.

He was once ranked as the best checkers player in Canada and served as president of the Canadian Checker Association. He passed on his love for the game by teaching it to young people at the Boys and Girls Club of Winnipeg.

Despite living on the street, Adams was committed to his health and practiced yoga regularly.

Zarn met Adams near her office in Cityplace on Nov. 8, 2019. Zarn regularly buys coffee for strangers she encounters. That day she bought Adams a tea, and in the days that followed, the two became friends.

“I would make him tea in my office and I would bring him food from home,” Zarn recalls. “Bit by bit, he would tell me about his life and his circumstances. We became really good friends and I got to learn about who he was and how he ended up on the street.”

Adams was nearly blind by the time Zarn met him and he had faced significant adversity while living on the street — including being assaulted some 25 times.

What struck Zarn most, however, was Adams’ intelligence, Christian faith and integrity.

Adams wanted people to look beyond his visual impairment and homelessness and see him for who he really was. He often quoted a song popularized by the Animals in 1965, with the lyric: “Oh Lord, please don’t let me be misunderstood.”

Gradually, Zarn started connecting with people from Adams’ past, as well as social services that had worked with him. Eventually, they were able to secure independent living for Adams.

Along the way, Zarn shared about her relationship with Adams on social media. Her friends began reaching out to help, creating a support network Zarn dubbed Team Leroy.

When Zarn posted on social media she was thinking about ordering Team Leroy T-shirts, she quickly received 70 orders. The shirts raised $2,000 to support Adams.

“That’s what kept him alive in his final months,” Zarn says. “More importantly, that gave him the gift of knowing he was part of a community that loved him and respected him for who he truly was.”

Adams died five months after suffering an aortic aneurysm.

“He was family to me by the end,” Zarn says. “We connected on a level I never expected.”

Zarn invites anyone who is interested to attend Team Leroy Yoga Day.

The two-hour event will include a panel discussion about homelessness and mental health, as well as a yoga session for people of all fitness levels. Tickets are $30 (http://wfp.to/oSM).

If you know a special volunteer, please contact aaron.epp@gmail.com

fpcity@freepress.mb.ca

Aaron Epp

Aaron Epp
Reporter

Aaron Epp reports on business for the Free Press. After freelancing for the paper for a decade, he joined the staff full-time in 2024. He was previously the associate editor at Canadian Mennonite. Read more about Aaron.

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