Castries, Saint Lucia— Date : August 5th, 2021,
Watch out for the launch of a new social media and communications campaign celebrating diversity and the importance of inclusion for children with special needs from the Sacred Sports Foundation (SSF), in collaboration with The Maria Holder Memorial Trust. The new campaign is part of the Ability Beyond programme that aims to improve healthy lifestyles, child well-being and physical activity opportunities for Saint Lucia’s children with special needs.
Ability Beyond will be implemented and run until October 2022 and once again reinforces the commitment of SSF and the Trust in supporting local children with a range of challenges. This latest programme follows on from the Ability Counts programme that works with the island’s five special needs schools and is undertaken in partnership with the Ministry of Education’s Special Education Unit.
In addition to the new communications plan, the programme will train14 young unemployed females and 6 male mentors, some with developmental challenges, working with the children in local special schools.
“This programme is specifically designed for our special needs participants,” said Nova Alexander, SSF Executive Director. “More school-based programmes will be added to our existing outreach with structured activities consisting of a session/game twice per week, with the children working primarily in a mixed or pan-disability setting. Children of all ages will learn new physical and cognitive skills supported by youth from their communities in a safe environment.”
“We are delighted to once again support our partners in Saint Lucia, and this is a testament to our commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture in the area of Education,” said Ruchelle Roach, Chief Executive Officer of The Maria Holder Memorial Trust, a Barbados-based charity that also supports projects in some OECS Countries. “We applaud the efforts of Sacred Sports Foundation in its continued endeavours to reduce inequality by empowering and promoting inclusion of all, including persons with disabilities”.
