Wentworth organisations honour and empower those living with disabilities
The festive cheer was in full swing at the Merewent Cheshire Home when residents were treated to a Christmas themed party.
THE atmosphere at Merewent Cheshire Home was charged with festive cheer as residents were treated to a Christmas themed party to end National Disability Awareness month on Thursday, 26 November.
In an effort to spoil the residents and put a smile on their faces, the heartwarming event was organised by Wentworth Sports Confederation deputy chairperson Neil Axford and his team together with local organisations and businesses from Wentworth.
Sharing her views on the importance of disability awareness, Merewent Cheshire Home social worker, Samara Hughes said: “It’s unfortunate that disabled people are still viewed and treated unfairly in this day and age. We have a resident here who has her matric and a diploma in business administration, but can’t secure a permanent job. She gets constant learnerships as part of companies’ employment equity act, but it is as though, she’s never good enough for full time employment. She’s very competent and intelligent but she can’t secure something permanent. A lot of companies use disabled people just gain their equity points for the year. I don’t think there is genuineness from companies to include the disabled in the workplace. And even in instances where they are somewhat included, it’s usually for a minor disability or one that isn’t really noticeable.
“Another issue is that of the lack of accommodation for the disabled in the school environment. A lot of our residents didn’t get the opportunity to go to school because they come from disadvantaged backgrounds and aren’t any disabled schools in their areas. ABET is done at one of the schools here in Wentworth but the room it is done in is on the second floor and can’t accommodate our residents. I’ve asked if they could move it to the ground floor or an alternative venue but no. Something as basic as stairs is keeping them from an education. They just want to have the same kind of opportunities that everyone else has,” said Samara who hopes to see more inclusivity and integration of disabled persons in all spheres of society.
She explained that this year has been uniquely challenging especially for residents at the home. “Being stuck inside the home, especially when they’re used to having freedom has been very difficult for them. We also have very limited resources in terms of what we can offer them to keep them busy during the lockdown. Even now, we still have to be a bit strict in terms of them going out. They only go out for necessities. Introducing the Covid-19 protocols was also difficult. For example, with the masks, residents would lose and misplace them almost as quickly as they were handed out to them, because they can’t really take responsibility for them. The added expenses of keeping Covid safe, such as sanitizers and masks have also added to the financial stress.”
An appeal is made to the public for donations of face shields for the home’s residents. The Merewent Cheshire Home will also host a fundraising dinner dance event on 12 December which will take place at Enchanted Gardens. Tickets are R350. To purchase tickets or for more information call the home on 031-468-1667, 031-468-3682 or send an email to merewentcheshire@gmail.com
WATCH: Honouring and empowering those living with disabilities
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