Sinokubonga Nkala
Musawenkosi Moyo
IN a heart-warming initiative, the Makhosi Michaela Foundation in Bulawayo has dedicated itself to empowering children with Down’s syndrome and their families in Zimbabwe.
The foundation provides essential support services, including therapy, education, and community outreach programmes, to improve the quality of life for individuals with Down’s syndrome.
The foundation was launched on 23 March 2024, by a Zimbabwean couple based in America, Thurston Davis and Ntando Davis.
They were inspired to start the organization after the birth of their daughter, who was born with Down’s syndrome.
Manager for the foundation Lilian Vela, said their mission is to promote diversity, inclusivity, and improve the lives of marginalised people with Down’s syndrome in Zimbabwe through education, advocacy, medical assistance, financial support, and other initiatives.
She noted that the organisation currently serves 72 children and their families across the country, a significant achievement considering it’s only been eight months since its inception.
Vela also mentioned that the foundation collaborates with professional therapists to provide both children and parents with psychological assistance.
“We understand that by providing parents with psychological assistance, we can create a healthy home environment for the child. Parents will have someone to share their struggles with and acquire better knowledge on how to assist their children,” said Lilian.
She explained that their programmes also include a monthly pop-up clinic, physiotherapy, parent and caregiver support groups, food assistance, and computer skills training, among other things.
Lilian emphasised the need for early intervention so that children can learn to walk, talk, and maintain their early developmental milestones.
“Because of stigma, people in the community have different misconceptions about Down’s syndrome. As a result, parents often fail to get their children the appropriate help to grow and develop into independent and successful individuals,” said Lilian.
She said that their greatest milestone so far was the purchase of an echo-cardiogram machine for heart monitoring to assist children with congenital heart defects.
“At least half of children living with Down’s syndrome suffer from underlying medical problems, including congenital heart defects, and often require immediate treatment or diagnosis. Before, there was only one machine to serve all patients in the whole of Bulawayo.
“We hope that through this machine, we can mitigate untimely deaths and save as many lives as possible. Also, the machine is not only for children living with Down’s syndrome but for all people who are in need of it,” she said.
The project manager for the foundation Tevington Vela, said that their biggest challenge so far has been sponsorship.
“Right now, we grow vegetables to create revenue for the organisation, teach children farming, and also support families by giving them those vegetables so that they can feed the children at home,” he said.
Looking to the future, he said they want to build facilities that will cater for children with disabilities.
“We want to grow big as an organisation, and recently we were given land. We want to build a school like the Jairos Jiri Centre and clinic there to assist the children,” said Tevington.
Tevington urged parents not to hide their children with disabilities and to get assistance for them.
“These children are a gift from God. Here, we don’t call them children with disabilities; we call them children with different abilities because they are capable of many things,” he said.
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