Kingston, Jamaica – Friday April 4, 2014
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Participants in the annual Autism Awareness street march held in Montego Bay last Friday, April 4
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The
Montego Bay Autism Centre (MBAC), in partnership with the Digicel Foundation,
hosted the annual staging of its Autism Awareness Street March under the theme
“Autism…different in extraordinary ways”. The March, which took place in
Montego Bay on Friday, April 4, saw over 150 persons marching from Dead End
Beach to Dump-up Beach in support of this very worthy initiative.
Adama
Blagrove, Director of the Montego Bay Autism Awareness Centre, expressed
gratitude to the Digicel Foundation for collaborating on this initiative. “We have
tried so hard to have the voices of our children heard, so when we found out
that the Digicel Foundation was coming on board, we celebrated because we knew
immediately that their involvement would help us to deliver on this very
important objective. We are so excited about their vision in deciding to pay it
forward and contribute to the future development of these children. This road
march doesn’t stop here— it’s a lifelong journey for these children. So we’re
geared up and excited about what lies ahead for this partnership!”
The
Montego Bay Autism Centre Street March started six years ago (April 2008) with
four parents, their children and staff members from the Centre. In celebration
of World Autism Month, the group met at Dump-Up Beach, prayed and released
balloons. Over the years, as the Centre grew in size, so too did the March. This
year’s staging saw participation from representative from the Urban Development
Cooperation (UDC), Rotary Club Sunrise Montego Bay, Mega Mart, Doctor’s Cave,
Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD), Rainforest Seafood,
Kiwanis Club and Digicel Foundation.
Digicel
Foundation’s CEO, Samantha Chantrelle, said she is delighted that the
Foundation is able to be a part of activities geared towards improving autism
awareness and greater acceptance of members of the autistic community.
“Supporting
autism and raising the awareness of this condition continues to be an area of
immense focus for us in the Digicel Foundation and so we are very happy to be
able to partner with groups across the island in helping to improve the lives
of our autistic population. Seeing these children happy and being given the
opportunity to develop to their full potential is a real blessing,” said
Chantrelle.
The
Foundation has also been actively involved in drumming up awareness about
autism among its staff members. In celebration of Autism Awareness day on April
2, the staff at Digicel were engaged in the ‘light it up blue’ for autism
campaign, where staff members purchased blue sponge noses, took selfies while
wearing them and posted to social media. The proceeds from this activity will
be used to buy tablets for autistic children of staff members.
In
addition to the Street March, over the past month, the Foundation also
supported Surfing for Autism, held on March 29 and will partner again with
JASA’s for their annual World Autism Awareness Month Concert, set to take place
on Saturday, April 12.
Autism is the world’s fastest growing developmental
disorder. It is a lifelong disability with a normal life expectancy. Autistic
children show delays or regression in speech, social skills and physical
abilities. Approximately 450 autistic children are born in Jamaica each year.
Early interventions, such as speech, occupational and behavioural modification
and physical therapies, give children a chance at a normal life.
About
Digicel Foundation
The
Digicel Foundation is the largest local private sector foundation in Jamaica.
Since its inception in 2004 the Foundation has invested over J$1.2 billion in
communities in which Digicel operates island wide. The Digicel Foundation has
been proactive in the areas of Education, Special Needs, and Community
Empowerment.
The
Digicel Foundation has:
- Invested over J$100 million in their Enrichment Initiative in partnership with the Ministry of Education to improve literacy at the primary school level island wide.
- Invested over J$38 million in resource rooms, including science and IT labs, in high schools island-wide.
- Committed to building three Special Needs schools, two of which, the STEP Centre, and NAZ Children’s Centre broke ground in 2012.
- Invested over J$60 million in Community Empowerment initiatives over the past four years, including $10 million annually and $15 million in 2012 to support the National Best Communities Competition and Program.
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