April is a month with many special days and public holidays:
In celebration of the human rights of people with disabilities, the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) contracted the National Office of Epilepsy South Africa to host an entrepreneurship expo. The Expo took place in Cape Town on 22 March and aimed to raise awareness about entrepreneurship as a career option for people with disabilities. Exhibitors included the National Department of Trade & Industry, small enterprise development agencies, sector education and training authorities, training providers and entrepreneurs with disabilities.
| NATIONAL OFFICE NEWS
The month of March is derived from the first month of the ancient Roman calendar Martius, named after Mars, the Roman god of War – and how very appropriate: This month we celebrated International Women’s Day on the 8th, as well as the South African Human Rights day on the 21st. We celebrated the rights of all people, but especially the more marginalised groups. We remembered the war or struggles that people had to endure before the eventual establishment of equality and acceptance. We celebrated basic human rights, the right to inclusion, the right to have proper access to health care and education, the right to freedom and security of person, of privacy – the right to life! We also reminded ourselves that in many instances, the war on equality, inclusion, acceptance and basic rights are still hard fought. National Office is definitely marching on in the fight against the discrimination of people with epilepsy and other disabilities. We will continue the war to eradicate the stigma surrounding the condition and apply our weapons to the acceptance and inclusion of people with epilepsy and other disabilities into mainstream society. The Troops Although a small staff complement at National Office, we are a dynamic and driven team with strong motivation to accomplish our goals, but we need help. Battle’s aren’t fought and won by only a handful of people. One needs generals, strategists, cavalry, ground troops, artillery and sea and air support – a whole complement of people coming together to add skills, experience and knowledge in order to become victorious. Our appeal is therefore that regardless of who you are or where you come from, there might be something that you can do to help fight for the rights of people with epilepsy and other disabilities. Please join our forces as volunteer by contacting me at National Office on (021) 595-4900 or via e-mail at fundraising.no@epilepsy.org.za . You can make all the difference in the result of this fundamental effort. Become one of our troops! At the recent NASA (Neurological Association of Southern Africa) congress in Durban, Cipla Medpro came forward with a remarkable addition to our forces with a contribution of R20,000. We thank Cipla not only for this contribution, but for their continuous support and assistance – for being our Cavalry in this noble battle. The Weaponry A good strategist will tell you that rather than loads of weapons, you need only a few of the correct weapons to defeat a specific enemy. Our enemies are ignorance, discrimination, stigma, exclusion and we have decided on our strategy and campaign to combat these: We call it the Building True Potential Campaign http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/index.php with its five Walls of True Potential as its foundation and support. The Wall of Acceptance http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/wall_of_acceptance.php– to attack discrimination and ignorance with proper education about the condition and the rights of people with epilepsy and other disabilities. The Wall of Opportunities http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/wall_of_opportunities.php– to defend our services, our weapons, in a financially sustainable way so that we can respond immediately and can continue to address the needs of our clients. The Wall of Health and Wellbeing http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/wall_of_wellbeing.php– to defend our clients against the above enemies and ensure optimal psycho-social functioning of those living with epilepsy and disability. The Wall of Empowerment http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/wall_of_empowerment.php– to armor our clients for the attacks from society and outfit them with the correct weapons for their battles by providing life- and skills training, training in entrepreneurship and opportunities for income generation. The Wall of Good Governance and Excellence http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/wall_of_excellence.php– to strengthen and grow our forces with continuous assessment, improvement and development so that we are always equipped with the right weapons to continue the march… Join the Battle All you need to do to join this important battle is to decide which Wall of the Building True Potential Campaign http://www.epilepsy.org.za/nationaloffice/fundraising/index.php you want to support. These Walls form the foundation of the campaign and we need you to help us to build them into strong forces of attack and defence. We have everything ready, the weaponry and the defences. All we need now is for you to add your bricks to these Walls of True Potential. Click on the wall of your choice and follow the easy steps to make sure that the battle continues, and that once and for all, we will all be conquerors in this vital cause. |
Forward… March!
The new hydroponics tunnel, sponsored by the DG Murray Trust, at the Geduld residential care centre in Springs has yielded its first tomato harvest. The crop is exceptional and is being sold at the Springs market as well as the local mini market. The centre is also supplying our Daggafontein centre’s kitchen with fresh tomatoes daily and selling directly to the public at R7.00 per kilogram.
Work on the new East Rand Protective workshop at the Geduld centre (sponsored by the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund) is progressing on schedule with the roof recently being completed. Centre Manager Juanita de Canha reports that the building will be completed within the next four weeks.
NOSA CEO, Gary Streek and Client Liaison officer, Evadné du Preez presented Magdaleen Kruger (Director of the Gauteng Branch) with 100 overalls on 3 March 2011. The overalls will be used by employees in the East Rand Protective workshop.
| THE FREE STATE & NORTH WEST BRANCH SAYS THANK YOU
Thank you for your support! Today is the end of yet another financial year. It is not easy for a welfare organization to get through a financial year without the loyal support of businesses and individuals. Some of our supporters are so regular that they are friends. With the support, we were able to provide the following services. • Community Development in rural communities • Home Based Care to bedridden community members • Mental Health services • Education and advocacy to companies, schools and individuals • Residential Care to Adults with epilepsy and or other disabilities • Developed our staff to provide and improve service delivery • Food security to community members • Victim empowerment • Entrepreneur development • Day Care to community members of Tumahole, Parys, Mokwallo and Vredefort. THANK YOU! We are joyfully shouting, as it is all of you that made our hands strong in the work we are doing. We are always looking for new partners that can help us to help others, cherish the partners we have and be loyal to our clients. If you want to become involved or need to make contact with us, please call Tertius Meyer on (056) 811-5959 or email freestate@epilepsy.org.za. |
The Free State & North West Branch cares for 84 adults with epilepsy and/or other disabilities at our residential care facility. We take pride in protecting the human dignity of our clients by always making sure that the facilities are clean, safe and attractive. At present, our facilities are in need of a fresh coat of paint.
A new project will be rolled out on 1 April 2011 to help people with disabilities to earn an income. This would not have been possible without the funding partnership with ABSA in the North West Province.
