A few hours standing around, getting his photo taken while wearing a pair of three-inch red heels was enough time to give Greater Sudbury Police chief Frank Elsner a different outlook on a common piece of female footwear.
Frank Elsner, Greater Sudbury Police Chief, stands in his three inch red heels, which he will walk a mile in on Sunday, April 18. Supplied photo.
"I was shocked at how much they hurt," he said. "I really was. I was shocked. I've often heard my wife complain about wearing heels, and never really understood."
Elsner was posing for a photo to promote the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes event, taking place in Greater Sudbury this Sunday, April 18, for the first time.
Opening remarks begin at centre court at Tom Davies Square at 10:30 a.m., with the walk beginning at 11 a.m.
The event is being run by the Greater Sudbury Police and the YWCA to raise awareness and money about domestic violence. The focus of the event is domestic violence against women, although men can also become victims of domestic violence.
Elsner noted there were reasons he wanted to have the police involved with the event, both professionally and on a personal level.
"As a dad with girls, I really want to create an environment and community where domestic violence is the exception, (where domestic violence) is something that's not a real concern for us as a community," he said.
"(And) as a police service, we deal with this every day, and unfortunately far too often," he noted.
Marlene Gorman is the executive director of YWCA Sudbury. She encourages people to come and take part of the event, either as men in women's shoes, or supporting those who are walking.
"Walk a Mile in her Shoes is a campaign mainly to promote awareness about violence against women, and to involve men in promoting that awareness," she said.
The campaign began in California, and since then has spread across the United States, Canada, and world-wide. While it is the first time the event is happening in Greater Sudbury, it has run successfully in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto.
All money raised from the Walk A Mile event go to the YWCA Sudbury’s Turning Point Programs for Women, providing support services for women and children escaping intimate partner abuse, and prevention programs for girls aged 12 to 16.
Elsner drew a comparison between the pain he felt standing in women's shoes to the pain a woman in a violent situation feels.
"The other side of this is...symbolic of walking away from domestic violence," he said.
Elsner and several other prominent community members, as well as anyone who wants to sign up, will be taking a mile long walk in women's footwear.
People interested in participating can register online at www.ywcasudbury.ca.
