Make sure to attend our Valentine’s Concert. No matter how profoundly disabled, all our children play a part in the concert. Treat yourself and treat our Cerebral Palsied children to the best

Valentine’s gift ever...

You are invited ...

45th Edition

Changing

Perceptions

14 February Valentine’s Day

January 2013

Thursday, 14th February 2013 at 10h00 (SHARP) to 11h00.

Kindly confirm your attendance with Pamella on 031-7003956 on or before Monday, 11 February 2013. Seats are limited.

In this issue of your newsletter

Sli on the road to recovery

New wheels for our man, Nkosi

Golfers who rock

Diary of a CP 20-something

World Cerebral Palsy Day

Development at Reunion

Our biker friends from Megaforce Motorbike Club arrived en masse and presented our Association with a cheque for

R15,200!!!

Share an hour of your time and be their VALENTINE!

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 money was raised when the various Presidents of participating motorbike clubs were ’auctioned’ off at their annual Toy Run.

Thank you Megaforce!

One of our CWAC chidren, Sli, recently underwent surgery on her left hip and leg to help her walk easier. It wasn’t long after Sli’s operation when her Mom phoned to say that Sli was missing everyone and was especially asking for Buyi. Buyi is one of Sli’s Care Worker’s at CWAC and they share a very special bond.

That very same afternoon, Paula and Buyi went to visit Sli in hospital. Sli was overjoyed with the visit and surprised everyone by sitting up by herself and gave them a thumbs up. We can’t wait to hear you giggling

at the Centres again.

Thank you Golfers! Ladies Section - Royal Durban Club

R15,000!!! QACCS

R17,900!!

Brave Sli is well on the road to recovery

Without financial contributions from groups like these, we simply couldn’t provide the level of individual care necessary for our children.

New wheels for our man, Nkosi!

There were great celebrations as Nkosi was the proud recipient of a brand new wheelchair sponsored by Game and Vodacom. We salute and thank these sponsors for their continued support by providing wheelchairs to people with disabilities. In the photo

Paula van Eeden (Centre Manager); Nkosi Mbaso and Charlene Rooi (Marketing – Vodacom KZN)

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WE ARE HAPPY

YOU ARE DOING SO

WELL SLI!

“I wondered why somebody

didn't do something.

Then I realized, I am somebody.”

~Author Unknown~

Daryl Parker, Marizelle Nichol and

Daryl Francois from QACCS

Lebo received a Staff award for 2012 for taking the least number of day’s leave.

WELL DONE LEBO!

Siyakubongela Lebo!

“Act as if what you do

makes a difference.

It does.”

~William James~

There was an interesting article in the paper written by a Dominic Lawson about gene therapy and the progress made recently at the University of Washington with respect to Down syndrome. The article challenges whether a cure for Downs would necessarily be a “blessing for the child or its parents”. As Julia once said to me regarding cerebral palsy, “Why would anyone want to find a cure for something that is not even going to kill you?” (She meant this as opposed to Duchennes muscular dystrophy which does.) The writer has a daughter living with Downs and he says she “is what she is, and that is the person who her parents and sister know and love.” He believes trying to change things that are not perfect is not the secret of life. If I had read this article ten years ago, I would have admired his sentiments greatly but I do not think I would have related that well to them. Of course, I love Julia and accept her. I have done so for quite a while. Or have I? I certainly went through patches as she does of good disability days and bad disability days. There were days when I wondered why life had to

be this tough; I wondered what life may have been like without the extra and sometimes extreme challenges one faces in raising a child with cerebral palsy. I wondered about the impact on my other children; what would they have been like without having to lose out on attention from their parents, without having to do all sorts of things children are not usually expected to do? Of course I realised that there were positive influences on their lives as well as negative. Sometimes I railed against our fate; especially Julia’s fate. Her life is tough and it hurt me to see all the times she was hurt. So at that time, if I had been handed a cure for cerebral palsy, I think I would have grabbed it with alacrity. How one’s attitude can change as time passes. The other day I realised that I would not have Julia any other way; nor would I have any of my children any other way. Whatever we have been through, both good, bad and indifferent, is what makes us who we are now. Perhaps if we had not had this challenge, it would have been something else. And we would have been different.

I think the difficulty is that we lack perspective when dealing with a child with a disability. Other challenges faced by families are perhaps less unusual so there are more examples in our society to give us, not only hope, but also direction, ideas and solutions. One feels so isolated and at sea without a clear vision of the future. There is so much uncertainty too regarding the right actions to take. If any of you reading this have young children with disabilities and you are going through what I went through for many years, take heart. The day will come when you know that whatever your life is like, it is perfectly fine. If I could give you all a gift for 2013, it would be this knowledge.

Individuals, groups or companies have until the 31 March 2013 to create finished products that match the ideas shortlisted. The World Cerebral Palsy Day Panel will then review these finished products and choose the winners. Prize money ($25,000) will be available for the best finished product for each of the

three ideas, as long as the final products are deemed to successfully replicate the shortlisted ideas.

The successful creations will be announced on Fri-day 19 April 2013 on the World Cerebral Palsy Day website. Progress on the commercial production and availability of the winning creations will be updated via the World Cerebral Palsy Day website, social media, print and broadcast media.

The winning products will be launched on the world stage by next World Cerebral Palsy Day,

3 September 2013.

World Cerebral Palsy Day, on the 4th September 2012, was a world first!

The theme for this unique day was:

“Change my world in 1 minute”.

Throughout August and September, people with Cerebral Palsy were given the opportunity to express what they needed to make their lives more independent or rewarding. Ideas were posted on the site and participants were asked to vote for the ideas they liked the best. Three ideas have been shortlisted and now have the chance to be turned into a reality. Fold up motorised wheelchair

Documentary: Cerebral Palsy in the 21st Century

The wheelchair with solar-power.

Diary of a Cerebral Palsied Twenty-something Diary no. 42 by Penny de Vries

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Autistic Unit - 3 new classrooms

Since we have broken ground in September, progress has been nothing short of phenomenal!

Join this project now - see insert...

Sheer delight in the Therapy room at our School

Thank

you

Donors!!!

- 66 new beds

Hostels facility

“Great opportunities to help

others seldom come, but small

ones surround us every hour.”

~Sally Koch~