Special Olympics Kenya gifts athletes with mobility devices on International Day for Persons with Disability
Special Olympics Kenya commemorated International Day for Persons with Disability 2021 by gifting mobility devices to athletes at Ol Donyo Sabuk at St. Jude Secondary school, Kitini.
After the participants listened to a written message from the National Director of Special Olympics Kenya, which was read by the Machakos County volunteer Coordinator, two tricycles and a wheelchair were handed over to athletes, David, Blessings and Kinyingi on 2nd December 2021. In addition, Special Olympics Kenya handed over two footballs as an inspiration for a unified and all-inclusive sports program. The parents of the athletes were also presented with foodstuff.
In rural Kenya, it’s difficult for a person with intellectual disabilities to fully participate in the community, it's even more difficult if the individual has other accompanying impairments that hinder their mobility. For them, it’s a double struggle, with lots of barriers to overcome due to lack of social amenities, health care services and inclusive settings. For these three athletes, life was almost immobile. With no movement, interactions with their peers, families and other members of the society became limited or nonexistent. But, as the elders say, “A good day is seen in the morning,” so was for the three athletes. On the eve of December 3rd, 2021, as the world was celebrating the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, they became free for the first time. Free to do simple and personal things such getting at out the house to enjoy a breath of fresh air, without having to wait around for the caregiver. Their caregivers too were free indeed. For the mother of Kinyingi, it would be the first time in 19 years that she would not be tasked to carry the athletic young man on her back, whenever he needed to move around.
Freedom comes in many ways, for David, the joy was sitting in the wheelchair and being able to wheel himself around.
Sport is a catalyst for change, and this was evident when the Principal of St. Jude Secondary School, Mrs Grace Kimotho, and the community elder, Mr. Patrick Malu reaffirmed their commitment to create awareness about the plight of persons with intellectual disabilities in that community and build networks that promote inclusion in that area. The volunteer coordinator Mrs. Violet Ndambo assured the athletes and their families of her relentless support to ensure that they were not left behind.
The athletes and their families were grateful to Special Olympics Kenya for the generous gesture. Both the families and the athletes acknowledged that the mobility devices will assist them to participate in sports with other athletes and peers without intellectual disabilities.
