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NEWSLETTER SEPT 2021

Dear Friends,

We all need to make important decisions on a day-to-day basis, especially as we navigate the ongoing uncertainties of COVID-19 and deal with the continual changes to our lives that this brings. In this environment how does anyone ensure that they are making well informed and balanced decisions? How do any of us make sure that our thinking is clear and we’ve considered all of the facts?

As I personally do my best to make decisions and pull my colleagues and team mates together at this time, I’ve realized that one thing matters above all else: we have to be “constantly curious”; we have to welcome questions, to probe and to think things through, both on our own and together with others. This type of thinking, where we are self-critical and welcome the scrutiny of others has to have a basis in two things; confidence in ourselves and real trust of others.

This goes to the heart of what real decision making has to reflect.

  • When we look at the decisions we make, let’s welcome other perspectives and welcome discussion or questions.
  • When we look at the decisions that others make, let’s ask constructive questions and not shy away from giving each other different perspectives.
  • We have to remember that challenging each other is not about pulling each other down – it is always about getting the best outcome for everyone and we’re all better off for it.

I talk about this because making decisions and establishing our commitment to a better future for everyone can be very difficult right now. As individuals, we can all easily get tunnel vision, or be recklessly adamant without considering the options – to miss the forest for the trees.

This mindset is also important when it comes to inclusion. To cultivate that empathy, we need to be ready for questions – to ask and be asked. The world has gone on for too long without considering what life means for the marginalized and we have to be ready to take on that role of asking and showing them –"Why not?"

With open minds and hearts let “constantly curious” be that guide in finding out what the world can be when people with intellectual disabilities are considered, included and most importantly empowered.

May we continue to change the game and we hope you enjoy the read.

 

Yours Sincerely,

 

Dipak Natali
President & Managing Director
Special Olympics Asia Pacific

HUMAN RACE
A MOTHER'S PRAYER
Joan's son Joachim Isaac spoke his first words only after the age of 3. He was hyperactive and strangers used to stare and whisper behind their backs in public.​ She was used to excelling in everything she did. Having a child with special needs was the last thing she expected. But fate works in miraculous ways, Akim's diagnosis led Joan to her calling. 
HEART OF A LION
Fahsai was born with Down Syndrome and a hole in her heart. Her biological mother left the family when she realized her daughter had an intellectual disability. When she was younger, she needed medication every day. As a toddler, she got breathless easily and her parents forbade her to take part in any physical activity. She watched quietly by the sidelines. Today, she is the star of the show. Nothing will stop her from achieving her dreams of becoming a top athlete.
FIGHTING FOR AN INCLUSIVE WORLD
Kevan, a volunteer coach with Special Olympics Singapore, is involved with both the badminton outreach program for athletes with ID as well as the Young Athletes program for younger children with and without ID. He is a teacher at Saint Anthony’s Canossian Secondary School and has inspired his own students to become volunteers. Together, they have learnt important life lessons from the athletes of Special Olympics, including values of strength, resilience, and grit. 
HIGHLIGHTS

TOM GOLISANO GIFTS $30 MILLION

TO SPECIAL OLYMPICS TO EXPAND
CRITICAL HEALTH SERVICES

FOR PEOPLE WITH ID

Tom Golisano, Paychex founder, philanthropist and father of a son with an intellectual disability, will provide $30 million, his third major gift to Special Olympics, to expand the Special Olympics Healthy Communities program, which provides health services globally for people with intellectual disabilities (ID), a population that has been critically underserved, especially during the pandemic. 

Through the Healthy Communities program over the past five years, Special Olympics conducted 700,000 athlete health screenings – double the number done in the previous five years – and offered follow-up care in the communities that decreased urgent referral needs by half. Healthy Communities added 150,000 athletes to fitness and health programs, decreasing their blood pressure, improving health outcomes and potentially adding years to their lives.

 

More than 150,000 health care providers have been trained in 60 countries and 130 health professional schools now have inclusive health curricula to train students on intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics has also partnered with many organizations, including foundations, governments, universities, and philanthropists to contribute to Healthy Communities programming.

 

“By investing in our Healthy Communities, Mr. Golisano will allow us to expand to hundreds of new domestic and global regions,” said Dr. Alicia Bazzano, Special Olympics Chief Health Officer. “This new gift comes at a critical time for our global community as we have seen during this pandemic just how little this population has been prioritized.”

A CHANCE TO FIT IN
Giving people with intellectual disabilities a chance to feel that they fit in, and have a community and friends who believe in them - that's what the Special Olympics movement is all about.

Dipak Natali, President and Managing Director of Special Olympics Asia Pacific, shares via Mediacorp 987 what the Special Olympics movement stands for, and ways to get involved in the #WalkForInclusion campaign.
 #CLEARTHEPATH WITH SO SINGAPORE
Athletes from Special Olympics Singapore joined volunteers from ELXR and headed out to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve for a hike while picking rubbish - an activity known as plogging - keeping fit while keeping the environment clean and green.

Plogging is a fitness trend that started from the Swedish community which combines jogging while picking up trash.The term “plogging” is coined from the English phrase “jogging” and “plocka upp”, a Swedish term that means “picking up”
FAMILY SUPPORT A FOCUS
ACROSS THE REGION
Engaging families is core to Special Olympics as they are the best poised to identify the needs of people with intellectual disabilities. They are also their keenest fans, support network and chief advocates.
 
With the pandemic and the change in routines for everyone, we see the need to better support families, and SO programs across Asia Pacific have been holding virtual gatherings not just address concerns but also create support networks.
 
Anxiety and restlessness are on the rise amongst the families of children with special needs. To combat these issues, Special Olympics Pakistan's Family Support Network organized a webinar on “Anxiety in Families of Special Needs Athletes due to the Pandemic" conducted by Dr. Muhammad Imran Yousuf, Mental Health Specialist.
Over in India, SO Bharat has been running monthly virtual gatherings for family and siblings and had its 5th run earlier in the month.
 
Shruti shared the journey of her brother Rishabh, who was bullied and called an 'Alien' from a young age to finding his confidence and joy through sports, willing three medals at the Abu Dhabi Summer Games 2019. However her concerns for his future remain, "Rishaba is 18 years old but is much younger intellectually; he is so gullible. He does anything that anyone tells him to do. How will he sustain in a world like this?"
 
Her sharing striked a chord with many in the room and similar concerns poured forth from other siblings and parents. The cafe is a channel to bring families together to share, network and pull together solutions and has been received positively.
 
A Family Health Forum focusing on Mental Health & Fitness was also recented hosted by Special Olympics Perak supported by Special Olympics Malaysia and Lions Clubs International.
 
Similar sessions and Family Health Forums have also been held recently in Fiji, Indonesia and Samoa.
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MADE POSSIBLE BY OUR PARTNERS
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354 Tanglin Road, Tanglin International Centre, #01-11/12, Tanglin Block, Singapore 247672


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