In AC I often write stories about the residents of PCC
Today, I’d like to highlight another group of young people with disabilities from PCC: 5 young adults who came to our sheltered workshop this year.
At the end, you’ll also read a special story about two deaf boys from our Daycare in Donkro Nkwanta.
Our philosophy behind the Sheltered Workshop
At PCC’s sheltered workshop, we welcome young people with disabilities from the wider area around Nkoranza. These young people still have family to care for them, but they come to our sheltered workshop for several years to stimulate their development.
From the very beginning we do make it clear to the parents/family that these young people will eventually return to their own village and family. That’s why they always go home from PCC during the various holidays to maintain good family ties.
And when they finally return home, they do so with additional qualities and acquired skills, so they can function better in their own environment.
Five new young adults in the sheltered workshop
This year, we first welcomed Rose, a 25-year-old woman with intellectual and physical disabilities. She is always happy, although her poor motor skills cause her to fall frequently while walking. Her parents passed away, but fortunately, her family takes good care of her. They asked if Rose could come to PCC, where she now enjoys her daily life at The House of Silence.
Not long after, Blessing and Rocky, a 20-year-old woman and her 18-year-old brother, came to PCC from the village of Ayerede. Their parents are no longer alive, and they were cared for by their grandmother, who sadly passed away recently.
Blessing is a strong young woman with a mild intellectual disability who takes excellent care of her younger brother, Rocky, who has an intellectual disability and is visually impaired.
Both also suffer from epilepsy.
Shortly afterwards, Eric came to PCC. He is 18, comes from Sunyani, and is also orphaned. His family cares for him and asked us if Eric could come to our workshop. He is a funny young man with Down syndrome.
And Akwasi, the latest newcomer, came from the village of Koforidua near Nkoranza. He is 17 and has had an intellectual disability since he was 2 years old. According to his parents, he was initially “normal” during his first year. He even went to a regular school, but that proved to be too much for him.
We wish all these young people a wonderful and educational time in our Community!
Two deaf brothers from Donkro Nkwanta
The 13-year old twin brothers Senior and Junior (well-chosen names, isn’t it?) attended our Daycare in the village of Donkro Nkwanta since about 3 months. They are particularly limited by their deafness.
They are lovely and positive boys, but we felt they weren’t comfortable at our Daycare, which also serves 10 other children with all sorts of disabilities. In fact, they were functioning below their potential.
Therefore, we contacted the School for the Deaf in Jamasi, Ashanti, and asked if this boarding school, despite the fact that both boys are a bit older, could still accept Senior and Junior for primary education and later on provide them with appropriate vocational training.
Fortunately, after assessing their hearing impairment, the school accepted them!
Thanks to our financial support, they can now attend this “School for the deaf”. We hope for their successful development as Senior and Junior progress towards becoming independent in the Ghanaian society.
This way, PCC can also offer help and support to young people with disabilities from the Nkoranza area in various ways and we are very proud of this!