Just when you start to wonder what the hell is going on in this country something comes along to revive your spirits. Last week whilst i was in NY with my sister I was gisting her about the fact that once I get back to Naija I have to do something to raise the awareness of autism in the country as I believe there are a lot of children that are probably being misdiagnosed and are therefore not getting any proper help at all.
I can also imagine that there are many frustrated (and tired) parents as well as one of the sub plots of autism is a very bad sleeping pattern. Some autistic children wake every hour on the hour and not just when they are babies either. We know of one lady with an eight year old son who will only eat white foods, that is the food has to be white and it must be served on a white plate, and to top it off he wakes up about 8 times a night. Imagine the stress of coping with that? (Count your blessings.)
Anyway as I was telling my sister this she mentioned that she had recently heard that one of her friend's sister had opened an autism school in Ikeja. Autism school? In Lagos. Not possible. I finally went over there today and I was gobsmacked. This lady has really created something great. The house is huge, with reasonable grounds (even a garden with grass!) and she has really laid out the rooms to cater for all their needs. Currently she has a music room, computer room, massage room, play room, several classrooms and so much more. In the garden is a trampoline and a series of raised walkways to help with their coordination ( a lack of being another one of the side effects).
I spent an hour chatting with her about what led her to this and it turns out her son is autistic and she just decided to grab the bull by the horns. She has studied, attended various seminars, workshops conferences etc and then put together a business plan which GT Bank has gladly financed. As a matter of fact the bank gave her three times the amount she was asking for in order to ensure that it was done properly and I can tell you the place certainly looks the business.
She currently has three pupils and three teachers so the kids are getting real one on one however she is expecting more students next year. She is planning to be in the UK next week and I will ask her permission to be more open about her and her school. Finally we discussed the setting up of the Nigerian Autistic Society in January of next year. Progress. Progress. Progress.
It is truly amazing what one person with the right will and spirit can accomplish. There is plenty of room for others like her. I wish her all the best and I hope to bring you more later.
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Wow! Well done oh. And kudos to her too. This is what naija needs - people doing it for themselves. We also have to give GTB credit where credit is due. The bank appears to be very supportive of private initiatives that are innovative and generally for the benefit of Nigerians as a whole.
likewise - kudos to her, and also to anyone open minded enough to give these children the benefit of the doubt. Now that there are as many as 1 in 166 children being diagnosed in the States this means that we all know someone whose life has been touched by autism. Our children will grown up to rub shoulder with autistic adults, so the sooner we can all recognise these changes the better everyone's lives will be.
Best wishes
Does she have a website? How good is the publicity?
Yes, I agree with April. GTB is one of a very few Naija banks with a human face...
chxta - she has not got a website going yet but I am sure it is in the works. As I say I hope to get more info from her when we meet next week.
Kudos to GTB certainly, as we are not talking about trifling sums of money. The other thing is that they also realise that this is not an investment on which they are going to see huge returns if any.
What encouraging news! The existance of such a school really does seem miraculous. As you mentioned in another post some time back, there do seem to be multiple angels watching over your family. My prayers are with you as you continue with your plans to move.
amaaaaazing!!!!c:)
This is such heart warming news! Well done to her.
I am amazed and desperate for information. I am relocating from Canda with my son and this is nothing but an answer to prayers. Does anyone have any information, an address or phone number would be greatly appreciated.
lolab - thanks for dropping by. i assume that your son is autistic? we have just returned from nigeria wherre we were very pleasantly surprised at the growing industry and number of professionals looking after autistic children. I am not sure what age he is but the Grange school, ikeja, Greensprings, ikeja and also meadowhall in Lekki all cater for special needs children.
There is also Patrick at www.pslc-autism.org. and my new email address is now dakande@pslc-autism.org.
January's edition of True Love magaine also carried articles on some of the professionals working in the field. So please have hope. It is certainly not mature or pefect but there is at least now a foundation being laid. Good luck and let me know how you get on.
Thank you so much for the response. Be sure I will be checking out the website and sending you an email very soon. All this information is music to my ears.
Please update your blog anytime there is more informations. Lots of blessings
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