Reunion School opened its doors in April 1994 and caters specifically for Cerebral Palsied children of all population

groups. Pupils from across the region are accommodated, from as far south as Weza and as far north as Nongoma.

Reunion School is the only Cerebral Palsy school in the world that offers Education, Skills Training and Therapy in their

mother tongue – ZULU.

In 2004 our Association was blessed

when THE VICTOR DAITZ

FOUNDATION donated the money to

build eight new state-of-the-art

classrooms, a 66 bed fully equipped

hostel, dining hall and large equipped

kitchen for our school.

When the need arose to facilitate

Autistic children, The Victor Daitz

Foundation did not hesitate and once

again offered their overwhelming

sponsorship of a Autistic Unit

comprising of 3 classrooms.

At the official opening of this much

needed facility, Mrs Makhaye, Principal of the Reunion School, shared; “For the 173 pupils who attend Reunion - most

of whom are boarders – what you see here today, is, to our children, much more than just a school - it's where our

special learners live and learn...”

A delightful audience was entertained by our precious children, who

all wore their beautiful bandanas with much pride whilst

performing their THANK YOU songs to the donors. Each learner

received a lovely gift and their favourite midday meal. All invited

guests toured the facilities and were in awe of the work achieved by

The KZN Cerebral Palsy

Association successfully

completing a much needed

development at this unique,

Reunion School.

47th Edition

Changing

Perceptions July 2013

In this issue of your newsletter

Swings and Round-abouts

Thank you Nielson

Important dates

Diary of a CP 20-something

Annual National Cerebral

Palsy Conference

P O Box 10213 Ashwood 3605

Telephone: +27 (0)31 700 3956 Facsimile: +27 (0)866 153 913

Email: info@kzncerebralpalsy.co.za Website: www.kzncerebralpalsy.org.za

Our Association is a registered Non-Profit (002-154 NPO) and Public Benefit Organisation (PBO 930000042) with Section 18A Tax Exemption status.

“The true meaning of life

is to plant trees,

under whose shade you do

not expect to sit” ~Nelson Henderson~

Thank you to The Victor Daitz Foundation

Page 2

play. These specially constructed wheelchair’

friendly items make it possible for them to join

in at last!

In his address, CEO of Gold Reef Chemicals, Mr

Desmond Beemiah, quoted Mahatma Ghandi in

saying:

“You must be the change you wish

to see in the world.”

Gold Reef are long time supporters of Reunion

School, who have made many changes possible

over the years. On behalf of the precious little ones

we care for, the KZN Cerebral Palsy Association

would like to say a huge:

“THANK YOU”

There was unbelievable excitement at

Reunion School recently with the handover of

specialised playground equipment by Gold Reef

Speciality Chemicals in association with HCI Foundation.

All children love to play on swings, see-saws and round-

abouts. But for a child who is confined to a wheelchair,

the fun is usually restricted to watching other children

Volunteers from the Nielsen La Lucia and Pietermaritzburg offices arrived with car loads of gifts, linen, grocery items, fruit, cleaning materials and more. One of our learners, Mthobisi Msomi, received a brand new and bigger wheelchair to make him more comfortable. After performing a few well-rehearsed songs and dances to say ‘thank you’ to their benefactors, the children were treated to a mini disco, and they jived the morning away. It was a day to remember, and receiving their goody bags full of treats and balloons was the exciting cherry on the top.

“There can be no keener

revelation of a society's soul

than the way in which it

treats its children”

~Nelson Mandela~

09 August National Women’s Day

13 August KZN Cerebral Palsy Association’s AGM

07 September Browns’ School Fete

21 September Pevensey Place’s Fete

Strange as it may seem, Julia often forgets she has a disability that limits her. As do we all. We have come to see the person, not the disability. Sometimes, incidents occur that shock her back into reality. One of the things that highlights this is when she realises she is not in control. Perhaps those of us who are sensitive to this make an effort to give her the time to direct us according to her wishes, rather than imposing our wishes on her. One day she was at the bio-kineticist and the person who took her there was filling in for her caregiver. She was having a conversation with the receptionist before going to another room but she was pushed on while in mid-conversation. No doubt we all sometimes wish a person talking to us could be whisked away, however, having this happen to her serves as a reminder of her dependence. Of course, it was unintentional but nevertheless thoughtless.

Julia really enjoyed it when her sister, Lesley, related a comment made by a friend. Lesley had been pushing him around in Julia’s wheelchair. Needless to say, Julia was asleep at the time; if anyone plays with her wheelchair she

becomes highly incensed. We may find this petty but to her, they are her legs and not a plaything. The friend became a bit anxious, telling Lesley to slow down. He stood up

and said, “I really feel for Julia now. That was so scary! I had no control of where you were taking me and it was not a nice feeling.” Apart from being annoyed at this illicit use of her wheelchair, Julia felt really gratified to hear that someone had an inkling of what it is like for her.

Another thing that reminds her, not only of her disability, but of the way others perceive her is having to deal with officialdom whether this is in banks, hospitals or government. Recently she had to visit the Department of Social Development to apply for the new social grant card. Unfortunately this was an extremely humiliating experience. The officials only spoke to her caregiver, Selinah, and not to her. Furthermore, they spoke in Zulu. She does understand a smattering of Zulu but not enough to enter into the conversation. When she asked them to speak English, they mocked her. To add insult to injury, they complained about her difficulty in manoeuvring her fingers and thumbs for the prints

required. Clearly these people need some education and training.

I am happy to say that though these things do knock Julia, it never lasts and she soon bounces back. I also do not like to dwell on the negatives but I do think it is important that awareness is raised about the kinds of attitudes people with disabilities have to counter.

On a lighter note, I sometimes question Julia regarding decisions she makes. I want to check she is thinking things through. So perhaps I am also guilty of under-estimating her. She told me off the

other day saying, “Mom, I’ll be thirty in 4 years’ time – you’d better start trusting me!”

Diary of a Cerebral Palsied Twenty-something

Diary no. 44 by Penny de Vries

Page 3

As always, it was a

fabulous treat when

Bronwen comes out

for a visit from

America.

“Every sunrise

is an

invitation for

us to arise

and brighten

someone’s

day”

~Richelle E. Goodrich ~

Page 4

Centres Manager for CREST and

CWAC, Paula van Eeden

attended the National

Cerebral Palsy Conference,

hosted by the Western Cape

Cerebral Association as part of

their 60th Anniversary

Celebrations.

The Conference kicked off with

School visits on Monday

morning. Paula had a

marvellous time at her visit to

Friends Day Centre, which is

similar to CREST and CWAC.

At the official opening,

delegates were entertained by the

brass band from the Filia School,

and what an inspiration it was to

see severely disabled kids play

such beautiful music!

The sessions were in blocks of

four, with each block related to

one another in some way.

Topics included:

Managing Growth in the

Child with CP,

Feeding issues and

approaches,

Drooling and the different

procedures to help this,

ADHD, Inclusive Education,

School Leavers,

Seating Challenges and

Communication.

An exhibition of various

supportive and communication

devices, as well as specialised

equipment was also held.

‘‘My sincere thanks to the KZN

Cerebral Palsy Association for

giving me the opportunity to

attend this conference.’

Western Cape Cerebral Palsy

Association did a fantastic job in

organising and hosting the

conference this year.

Congratulations on

your 60th Birthday

Celebrations

WCCPA!

Centres Manager, Paula van Eeden and Edith Makhaye, Principal of Reunion School at the Annual National Cerebral Palsy Conference