First Lady brings special gifts for special children |20 December 2022

By Patsy Canaya

Christmas has come early for four children with disabilities. Yesterday morning, 11-year-old twins ‒ Ezekiel and Adiel Thérésine, 14-year-old Laurent Raguin and 11-year-old Auria Barbé received a special visit from First Lady Linda Ramkalawan, patron of the National Council for Children (NCC), who also presented them with several gifts.

The twins from Mont Buxton suffer from a mild form of cerebral palsy since birth, which is a group of disorders that affect their ability to move and maintain balance and posture. This means they have to remain in wheelchairs daily and for their mother, Amina Thérésine, the visit by First Lady was a kind, thoughtful gesture.

“We see her on television all the time visiting different places and meeting children so for her to be here today is a very good gesture and my family is very happy, especially the boys,” said Mrs Thérésine.

Among the issues discussed with First Lady Ramkalawan was her children’s education and their daily routine.

“She has been able to see how the kids are, how they spend their day and we have discussed what can be done to help them get some form of education. Because although they are disabled, they are able to grasp some things and we would love to see education come to them, since they cannot leave the house to go to school,” she said.

The boys received educational materials and different toys, including their favourite Disney character, Taz, and sets of control cars.

As for Laurent Raguin, he was presented with several gifts including a mug filled with goodies, a set of stationery, a school bag as well as a control car, which was his special request to the First Lady.

Facebook sensation, well-known talented keyboard player Auria Barbé received a guitar, along with other educational gifts.

Auria, who hopes to perform on stage one day in front of a large audience, said she wants to be a fully-fledged musician, practicing various instruments and is now adding guitar to her list.

The timid young girl who wished every child in Seychelles a merry Christmas, also took a few minutes to sing her favourite Christmas carol ‘We Wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year’.

Speaking to the media, NCC chief executive Yasmin Umarji, who accompanied First Lady Ramkalawan, said yesterday’s event was an extension of NCC’s ‘Give a Child A gift’ project.

She said they had not been able to include the children in their various activities such as the Children’s Day at State House in June.

She explained that their communication officer, San Finesse, had proposed back then that since they could not come to these events, they should instead go to the children’s homes to deliver their gifts.

“After liaising with the parents, they were also in favour of us coming to see them, so we decided to do it at around this time. We are totally in favour of this inclusive approach and not leaving any child behind so this is our way of doing it,” said Mrs Umarji.

She added that NCC will be taking up some of the issues discussed with the parents, to the authorities concerned, such as the twin’s education.

“We want to be their voice as well, so today was not just giving presents but also to see what more we can do to help the families,” she added.

The project is being done in collaboration with the family department and NCC said it will be an ongoing one throughout 2023.

Photos courtesy NCC