By Sibabalwe Tame
On 3 December, Sibanye Special Day Care Centre hosted a Disability Awareness Day Christmas party at Duna Library in Joza to celebrate and appreciate people with disabilities. Attending the event were various members of the community, persons living with disabilities and Ward 2 councillor Ramie Xonxa.
Slovo Dyira, the owner of the media company Slovo Dyira Media Communications, is also a person living with a disability. During the event, he encouraged young children living with disabilities and also educated people about living with disabilities.
“Just because we are living with disabilities, it does not mean we will not go anywhere in life; it does not mean we are any different to other people; we are just like you,” said Dyira.
“I see disabled people as special people,” he added, encouraging parents with disabled children to think that their children are unique, no matter what people say.
Sibanye manager, Malungisa Malonie, said the centre started operating on 6 August 2014 at Samuel Ntlebi Primary School in Joza.
“We were looking for a place to operate, and some schools rejected us,” said Malonie. She added that Samuel Ntlebi Primary accepted them to operate, “We were told to write a letter, and they [Samuel Ntlebi Primary] didn’t take too long before accepting us.”
She said that they are not paying any rent at Samuel Ntlebi; instead, they are using two unoccupied classrooms to operate. “When we got there, the classrooms had no electricity, so we fundraised, which helped us get electricity,” said Malonie.
According to Malonie, they currently have 10 children, but the number of children varies [from time to time]because of funding. “We do not have funding; fees from parents help us,” she said.
She added that Christ Church recently donated R1 500 to the centre.
“Sibanye has one permanent staff member, which is me, and we have four interns helping us,” she said, adding that the interns have been assisting at the centre for two years.
“We are working closely with the Department of Education from Gqeberha; they sometimes provide toys,” said Malonie, adding that the department has not provided toys in over two years because of a burglary at the centre in November 2020. She said they were robbed of two storage boxes of toys, a microwave oven, a computer, and a kettle. “And we are still trying to recover from that.”
Malonie said their aim next year is to hopefully lend a helping hand to Makhandans who need them. The centre offers help by assisting in teaching struggling learners from Samuel Ntlebi with their homework, among other things.
She said she has discovered that some children are not academically interested, which is where Sibanye Special Day Care Centre can help. “We can teach them gardening, baking, doing hair; we will be trying these skills starting from 10 January 2024,” Malonie added.
“Sibanye is a second home to every child; if you took your child there, you’ll never regret it; we are here to help children with disabilities,” she said.
Malonie says parents interested in enrolling their children at Sibanye Special Day Care Centre can contact them via their Facebook Page, Sibanye Special Day Care Centre, or WhatsApp or call them at 060 356 4762.
