Easton and his family.

The Grey Bruce Health Unit (GBHU) is featuring a Saugeen Shores family to urge people to get their flu shot this season.

"It takes a village to raise a child," reads the December 9 media release, "and a community to help protect one."

Easton is 3 years old, lives in Saugeen Shores, and was recently diagnosed with cancer. The GBHU said that Easton's immune system is immunosuppressed (weakened), and therefore the effects of getting influenza could be devastating for him.

In addition to Easton, his siblings, parents, and grandparents have all received their flu shot in hopes of helping to prevent the spread of the virus.

“Every time we take him out to do simple things like watch a sibling’s hockey game or go to the grocery store, it becomes a minefield that we now have to navigate through," said Easton’s mother, Alicia. “Getting the flu shot can literally save his life or any other immunocompromised person in (the) community.”

Influenza impacts about five million Canadians every year. That’s one in every seven, reads the release, adding that while no vaccine is 100 percent effective, getting the flu shot can help prevent the spread of influenza and can also help decrease the severity of symptoms as well as the likelihood of complications associated with influenza.

Anyone interested in getting a flu shot can do so through their local doctor, nurse practitioner or local pharmacy.