Disability organisations unite for Epilepsy SA’s first annual sport day
The event brought together organisations from Springs, Brakpan and Daveyton to promote inclusion, confidence and community for people living with disabilities.
The Epilepsy SA centre in Geduld hosted their first annual sport tournament on November 26, with visitors from San Michele in Brakpan, the Daveyton Association for People with Disability and the Daveyton Thusanang Protective Workshop.
The tournament featured various sporting codes like soccer, netball and cricket. Epilepsy SA’s assistant director Hans Tjege said that the event was aimed at wrapping up Disability Awareness Month and celebrating people living with disabilities.
He also added that hosting the sports day was encouraged by residents who expressed wanting such an event.
Tjege expressed that the organisation aims is to have a sports day yearly with various organisations partaking and to also have professionals soccer players come before and during the tournament, and practise with the residents.
“We would love to have people that play in big clubs come as role models and show support to our residents. It will also boost their confidence and allow them to work harder in the sport that they play,” said Tjege.
The centre’s social worker, Sylvia Manganyi, explained that the day united organisations that share the same mission to support people with disabilities during Disability Awareness Month and the 16 Days of Activism campaign.
She also said that for the residents, participating in these kinds of activities gives them a sense of belonging, promotes confidence, and fosters a meaningful life.
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“People living with disabilities are often discriminated against and stigmatised. Participating in sports promotes inclusion and a sense of belonging,” said Manganyi.
Manganyi also said that Disability Awareness Month helps to raise awareness with the slogans such as, “Nothing about us, without us.”
She added that such tournaments help raise awareness in the sense that a person with a disability has potential.
She expressed that people living with disabilities just need to be given an opportunity, whether in sports, the workplace, or in business. People with disabilities are often excluded from the development of society due to their disabilities.
