The 65th Founders’ Day Celebrations on 5th April were packed with various activities which kept us busy. Along with enabling us to talk to staff and board members and walk through the various areas of Raphael, enjoy a delicious breakfast cooked for us by the children of the Training Centre, it included a full day trip to one of the John Hunt District Outreach Centres.
The centre, in the village of Naugaon in the Garhwal Himalayas supports children with disabilities through a local support worker who attends programs in Raphael throughout the year. We met with the support worker and a number of the children and the families she supports. The support worker travels throughout the village and into country areas around the village to visit and support these families as is needed. This program is targeting a number of smaller centres and is a follow on from an earlier program designed to create awareness of disability, screen, assess and identify children, counsel families, provide appropriate intervention, home based programs and referrals where required over a much larger area.
The 4.5 hour trip from Raphael to the village along narrow winding roads of the lower Himalayas following the Yumma River was also an eye opener, at one point driving high into the mountains on a narrow dirt road. Not only was it very beautiful but it also showed us how difficult it is to get to doctors and physiotherapists and even get paperwork done from these villages.
The celebrations culminated in a wonderful performance from all the various areas of Raphael through dance and song, giving us a look into life in Raphael through the past 65 years. Raphael is indeed a happy place for all those who call it home, those who are able to attend school there and those who work there.
It was a pleasure to have been part of a wonderful celebration.
Susie Mackerras RCA International Programs Coordinator
