Orange County

Have you seen lavender-lined parking spaces in Orlando? Here’s who they’re for

ORLANDO, Fla. — Have you come across a lavender parking sign with lavender paint lines framing the spot in Orlando?

These specially marked spots are designated for cancer patients as part of a partnership between the Best Space Foundation and the AdventHealth Foundation.

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Recently, one of the spots was dedicated to Channel 9′s own Angela Jacobs, who died in July from breast cancer.

The idea of the “Best Spaces” lavender signs came from local Dr. Jay Johnson whose partner, Margaret O’Rourke, also died from the disease.

Read: ‘Fiercely loyal’: Remembering Angela Jacobs, our dear friend & colleague

“I just knew when my girlfriend who was battling cancer passed, we never had any parking spaces, I had to carry her to the beach,” he said.

The thought is that there are designated parking spaces for those with disabilities and expectant mothers, but none for people with cancer.

Read: 9 Florida nonprofits leading the fight against breast cancer

“If anything it makes a person feel good like you have your own space, the best space — you can pull right in and it’s yours,” Johnson said.

So far the partnership has installed more than 100 of the “best space” lavender signs with lavender lines in Orlando and is now working with other businesses to get the signs in retail outlets.

Read: Breast Cancer Awareness Month: How can you limit your risk?

If you want to remember someone with a parking sign, you can click here to make a donation for one to be made.

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Shannon Butler

Shannon Butler, WFTV.com

Shannon joined the Eyewitness News team in 2013.

Sarah Wilson

Sarah Wilson, WFTV.com

Sarah Wilson joined WFTV Channel 9 in 2018 as a digital producer after working as an award-winning newspaper reporter for nearly a decade in various communities across Central Florida.

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