On Friday, Candice and I headed off to the Boland School for Autism to see how we may be of service. To be honest, I went in with an inflated ego. I have some good years of autism experience under my belt as an SLP in the USA and I am half way through my behavior analyst classes. Candice is an OT and just top notch in all things OT (in my humble opinion). Together, us, as a self-proclaimed dream team could go in and give many suggestions and drop off our supplies that many of you graciously donated. Piece of cake.
One of the teachers, Jaco, picked us up at our guesthouse and briefed us on the way. I had been to the school before in 2010 to paint it so I was a little familiar with the children and the school site. They rent a few rooms from a church so the school is housed within the church building. Now, we immediately loved Jaco. He has this bubbly personality and you know immediately that you'd never grow tired of working with him. You can also see how much he loves his job as he describes the school and the children.
Friday is a slow and easy day at the school so we arrived just as the children were finishing a baking project with another teacher, Joey. When the children finished baking and eating lunch, they went outside to play which gave us a chance to sit down and speak with Joey + Jaco and in turn begin to think through our suggestions.
These teachers are A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I was humbled by the sheer emotion that exudes as they describe each child. I was almost devoured by love, if you could imagine it being so tangible. They love their jobs. The children love them. You can see it. You can feel it.
[insert repetitive sounds of glass shattering as my ego fell into a million pieces]
As I listened and watched their interactions with each other and the children, I wanted to shrink down in my seat with feelings of inadequacy. I was humbled.
I hope that we will be able to help them with some practical suggestions. Many of the suggestions could require manpower that they just do not have right now. We will go back next week to meet with the school psychologist and debrief a bit.
Here's the other bit of it. Much of what I saw that was needed does not require some fancy degree or extra letters behind your name or even a trip out here to do something. It just requires donations.
I have looked up their website in the past year several times and have seen "fundraisers." We were also invited to one next week for the children's concert. I thought to myself, "this is a lot of fundraisers." Now, if you are accustomed to doing fundraisers, you know they are not fun. They are stressful and they take time away from your life when they are due. Imagine doing them OFTEN because your school depends on it? Then, when you think about the reality of it, imagine doing them because your salary depends on it?!?! For me, I need security of knowing that my paycheck is coming. I need to know that I have supplies to use to do the best I can with my job. I have the luxury of depending on parents to purchase most needed or dire supplies. Not here. The school is not yet government funded so they rely on donations to pay teachers and provide what is needed for the school. The children are able to come there at a lower rate than other places. Many cannot afford private schools and even government schools have years-long waiting lists.
I just looked at all the lovely little faces in the school and imagined them not having anywhere to go. Tuition is R600 per month which to us at the moment is ~$70. Many families barely have that and they surely do not have more than that to go elsewhere.
The school needs our help!
For those that donated supplies, the teachers were very grateful. Please know that just an item or two here and there brought so much appreciation. When was the last time YOU were stoked over glue??!
We are hoping to do more while we are here. If we get any additional financial donations while we are here, then we are going to buy some supplies. We noticed that there are a few rooms that have yet to have blinds placed. This area can get HOT in the summer so I know the children must barely be able to stand being in the class with no air conditioning, the heat, and the sun in their eyes (remember that some children with autism have certain sensitivities anyway). We would love to make sure that blinds are purchased to cover those windows.
Thank you for what you have done so far for this school and please let me know if you have any additional questions or would like to assist. THIS is a great place to put your bucks.
Here are some pictures from the day:
a couple of the windows that need blinds
the "orange room" [1 of 2 classrooms]
the "blue room" [below]
a volunteer comes in during the week, bringing her own supplies, and makes crafts with the kids
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| This small area is where they do their baking -- all of the children were squeezed in to participate |
Joey, Candice, Danielle, Jaco
computer room [I do not think this room is up and working yet]
things we don't always think of : we donate large items like printers which is GREAT but then we forget that it costs $$ to purchase cartridges...
again, large items that still require supplies such as dry erase markers (which we brought) and the sheets
If you wanna help, donate to my gofundme account here.
For more information on the school, you can visit the website.
Grateful,
Danielle
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