By Leslie Wan and Hilary Sherlock
formatted also by Leslie Wan
formatted also by Leslie Wan
Hilary Sherlock - her perspective
Digicel visit
We recently received a call from Digicel Jamaica asking us if they could pay us a visit the next day. The new Digicel Group Ltd. CEO, Alexander Matuschka was in town and he wanted to see our school. We were told he had read the blog and thought this was the place he wanted to see, in action. A little history reminder…………We had owned the land that the school sits on now for several years prior to a building being on it. It had been our dream from the beginning to have a real school building, instead of utilizing a church hall. So, with serendipity, we bought the land so that one day we would be able to fulfill the dream. Along comes Digicel many years later, with their commitment to special needs work, and our land plus their generous charitable donation allowed us our school building.
We recently received a call from Digicel Jamaica asking us if they could pay us a visit the next day. The new Digicel Group Ltd. CEO, Alexander Matuschka was in town and he wanted to see our school. We were told he had read the blog and thought this was the place he wanted to see, in action. A little history reminder…………We had owned the land that the school sits on now for several years prior to a building being on it. It had been our dream from the beginning to have a real school building, instead of utilizing a church hall. So, with serendipity, we bought the land so that one day we would be able to fulfill the dream. Along comes Digicel many years later, with their commitment to special needs work, and our land plus their generous charitable donation allowed us our school building.
Digicel's visit set me on a reflective path. We are finishing our fifth school year in our not-so-new (but still a true
blessing) school. For the first time ever
we are planning a Labor Day project where we will do some much needed maintenance
work on our building and gardens. We remember again how wonderful it is for us
to be stewards of our own facility, and our ongoing gratitude to The Digicel Foundation for the
concrete dream. Initially our relationship with Digicel was one of being a grateful
receiver. This meant gratitude for the building, and some equipment, but most
of all gratitude for their trust and faith that STEP Centre would strive to
fulfill the right of all children to a quality education. Over the ensuing years
the relationship has become so much more than a monetary connection. It has
become an established base of mutual respect and a recognition that Digicel is pleased with our work, supportive of our dedicated goals, and genuinely believe
in the power and possibilities our children have. More importantly they believe
that our children deserve the same rights and respect that all children should
have.
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| Gift to Mr. Matuschka and Digicel from the children. |
We can now work, and are working on, wider
issues affecting the community of persons with special needs. These are:
advocacy and strengthening the voices and knowledge of parents of children with
special needs and caretakers, among other things. Digicel has gone from a simple
monetary contribution, to working in partnership with us to enable persons
with disabilities and their families, to achieve what is their RIGHT. We can now look at less traditional ways of
enriching our curriculum and working more on our community outreach. Finally, we are doing the second part of our
mission which is using our school, our staff, and our energy, to bring the
community in and to give back broadly for what we have been given. We are now giving forward in education and training to
other special needs stakeholders. The true mark of our gratitude is that we
strive to educate out into the community and are actively doing programs and curriculum work that will benefit others
outside our walls and space ( teacher training, parent workshops, internship
options for other special needs folks to work with us, garden curriculum and
resource material, etc.)
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| Our garden invites in teachers and community participants to learn about biodiversity curriculum |
The Ministry of Education
Over the years our relationship with the
Ministry of Education has also evolved.
Though the financial contribution is extremely critical to the survival
and growth of our school, the partnership is much more than a financial one. Working
collaboratively on joint projects such as a general curriculum for students
with moderate to severe special needs over many months, gave us opportunities
for many interactions and the building of trust. During this time we grew to
appreciate our Ministry colleagues as persons who are passionately committed to
our children. A
recent incident brought this sharply into focus for us. A potentially difficult situation occurred,
but, with the support of the team from the Special Education Unit – home,
school and the government, we were able to work together on a principled
solution. As many of our children have
conditions not usually found in the typical school population, our protocols
and standards are continually being challenged and refined. It is good to be able to do this with wise
professional counsel. The Staff and our contacts at the Ministry of Education
are an ally, a knowledge source, and a trouble shooter when the need arises.
For that, we are truly grateful.
Leslie's Final Thoughts
On a regular
basis we find that while we sometimes need to adjust our goals at the school. More
often than not, we find that others align in our goals and even enhance our
goals for our kids. Sometimes it is a matter of walking in our door to see the
magic, the energy and the determination of our children, and sometimes it is
about us asking for what we need help with. In both of these instances above,
the organizations have done both. It started out as a "project" or
a responsibility for each of the two entities above. Now for us, they have become our true supporters and believers. Belief is contagious and energizing,
and we have plenty of that to give back to others. But, belief has to be backed
up not only with action, but with HEART. I recently saw our teachers respond
with true compassion and appropriate remedies for a cut on one of our
children's lip. As I sat back and reflected on the incident, I realized that our
teachers not only have the heart, but have also been given the training, the
tools and physical space to address the "emergency". Sometimes it
takes the smallest "crisis" to see that we do the hard and
compassionate work daily, but we were given people, organizations and tools to allow
that to happen also.
Leslie's take away moment………This month we had one of our prior
students return on an "intern work assignment" with us. I had known him at the school all those years ago (I have been with STEP a looong time) and seeing him as a
work intern was like a firework that lit up my heart. It said to me, never give up and
never stop believing. What we give, returns to us in miraculous and affirming
ways. It says though the children go,
they really do take with them possibilities and determination we are never sure
of when they leave. Most importantly they take a respect for themselves and a
fondness for the time they have spent with us. That student became the teacher
for me that moment.
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