By Perry Holman, Executive Director, Vitamin D Society
We recently lost an icon in the field of vitamin D. Carole Baggerly, the Founder and Director of GrassrootsHealth, passed away on October 26th at the age of 82. She played the key role in helping organize the vitamin D scientists and researchers, and determining a universal consistent vitamin D message for the public. The lives she touched and the lives she saved through her disease prevention work were enormous. Her inspiration and positive approach to life will be greatly missed.
Please read more on Carole’s extraordinary vitamin D discovery journey here and her passing.
Carole was a wonderful friend and mentor to me. She was always there with her support and thoughtful advice. My fondest memories of Carole revolve around a series of Vitamin D and Sunshine Symposiums that the Vitamin D Society hosted across Canada during 2012-2014.
We travelled coast to coast with events in most major Canadian cities including Halifax, Toronto, Hamilton, London, Ottawa, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Victoria. Our venues were university lecture halls. Our speakers included Carole, Dr. Robert Heaney, Dr. Marc Sorenson and usually a local vitamin D researcher.
Carole was our opening speaker and master of ceremonies. She always began with a short song: “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine…” The audience would immediately join in with her. She had that personal connection with the audience that was very special. She was like a mother figure to everyone and you believed that she was genuinely interested in your personal health and wanted to teach you about the benefits of sunshine and vitamin D.
On our travels Carole would task me to find additional people, researchers or special groups for her to meet in each city and connect with prior to the symposiums. For example: In Ottawa we met with MP Dr. James Luney and Health Canada. In Winnipeg we met with a group of doulas who were interested in how optimal vitamin D levels would benefit mothers and infants. Carole never tired of connecting with people and educating them on the benefits of sunshine and vitamin D.
My fondest memories of Carole and her husband Leo, who always accompanied her, were the special times we spent together after the symposiums. I became their tour guide showing them this incredible country of ours.
I can still feel the warmth from that early spring day in Halifax when everyone came out to get some sun laying on the hill by the Citadel. Or that time in Calgary when we took a drive to Banff and enjoyed a beautiful warm sunny autumn day with the aspens blazing yellow among the tall green pines. Or the time we visited Wanuskewin Heritage Park near Saskatoon on the great plains and learned about indigenous culture and history. Or the Maritime Museum in Halifax or Butchart Gardens near Victoria. I could go on and on.
Those are the days and memories of Carole that I’ll miss and treasure the most.
Sunny days my dear friend! And like you always signed off, “Onwards”
