ED’s Message Dear Valued Members, It has been a busy and exciting past two months. In end October, our drummers and dancers participated in this year’s Purple Pa- rade to show our support to all persons with disabilities and wow the huge turnout. Some of our members had performed at the ASEAN Para Games this month at both the opening and closing ceremonies. With the start of the school holidays, we have our December holiday pro- grammes and year-end outings lined up for our members which I would strongly encourage everyone to participate actively. On behalf of the Board and staff of DSA, I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Moses Lee Executive Director Down Syndrome Association (Singapore) “Be The Change That You Want To See In The World.” Mahatma Gandhi (1869 – 1948) Differently Abled D S A News December 2015 DSA Centre DSA Centre DSA Centre 9, Bishan Place, #09-01 Junction 8 Office Tower Singapore 579837 Tel: 6500 9321 Fax: 6255 0337 Opening Hours: Mon to Sat ● 8.30 am - 6.00 pm DSA Thrift Shop @ TBC DSA Thrift Shop @ TBC DSA Thrift Shop @ TBC Blk 17A, Telok Blangah Crescent #01-270 Singapore 091017 Opening Hours : Friday ● 11.00 am - 3.00 pm For queries on donation of items, call Tel: 6271 3811 / 6500 9321. DSA’s 19th Annual General Meeting was held on the 21st Nov ‘15 (Sat) from 2pm till 4pm at DSA Centre. The ses- sion started with the EGM where matters on the associa- tion’s constitution were discussed, followed by the AGM. It was a great turnout by all members and everyone par- ticipated actively in both sessions. At the end, everyone had the opportunity to catch up with each other with some light refreshments and networking. Thank you all for attending. DSA 19th ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING (21st November 2015) Top: Members signing in. Left: The meeting in session. Right: Members raising up their hand for the vote. Below: Panel of Board members. Above: Makan time!
Transcript
ED’s Message Dear Valued Members, It has been a busy and exciting past two months. In end October, our drummers and dancers participated in this year’s Purple Pa-rade to show our support to all persons with disabilities and wow the huge turnout. Some of our members had performed at the ASEAN Para Games this month at both the opening and closing ceremonies. With the start of the school holidays, we have our December holiday pro-grammes and year-end outings lined up for our members which I would strongly encourage everyone to participate actively. On behalf of the Board and staff of DSA, I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Moses Lee Executive Director Down Syndrome Association (Singapore) “Be The Change That You Want To See In The World.” Mahatma Gandhi (1869 – 1948)
Differently Abled
D S A News December 2015
DSA CentreDSA CentreDSA Centre
9, Bishan Place, #09-01 Junction 8 Office Tower
Singapore 579837
Tel: 6500 9321 Fax: 6255 0337
Opening Hours: Mon to Sat ● 8.30 am - 6.00 pm DSA Thrift Shop @ TBCDSA Thrift Shop @ TBCDSA Thrift Shop @ TBC Blk 17A, Telok Blangah Crescent #01-270
Singapore 091017
Opening Hours : Friday ● 11.00 am - 3.00 pm
For queries on donation of items, call Tel: 6271 3811 / 6500 9321.
DSA’s 19th Annual General Meeting was held on the 21st
Nov ‘15 (Sat) from 2pm till 4pm at DSA Centre. The ses-
sion started with the EGM where matters on the associa-
tion’s constitution were discussed, followed by the AGM.
It was a great turnout by all members and everyone par-
ticipated actively in both sessions. At the end, everyone
had the opportunity to catch up with each other with
some light refreshments
and networking. Thank
you all for attending.
DSA 19th ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
(21st November 2015)
Top: Members signing in.
Left: The meeting in session.
Right: Members raising up their
hand for the vote.
Below: Panel of Board members.
Above: Makan time!
Page 2 December 2015 Down Syndrome Assoc iat ion (S ingapore)
Friends of MSF Award Congratulations to DSA’s Advisor, Dr Balbir
Singh for receiving the Friends of MSF award
from Minister for Social and Family Develop-
ment - Mr Tan Chuan-Jin. The award presenta-
tion ceremony was held on the 16th Oct ‘15 at
The Regent Hotel. It was worthy for Dr Singh
for his tireless and valuable contributions to
social services and the community over the
years. Thank you, Dr Singh for your support to
DSA(S) and persons with Down syndrome too.
DSA Advisor Dr Balbir Singh recognised for contribution to Singapore’s Nation Building
Thank you Dr Balbir Singh for being a beacon of light for the Sikh
community and also to persons with Down syndrome and their
families. Your contribution to DSA(S) is a significant one with your
vision of setting up DSA(S) 19 years ago. As our advisor, you con-
tinue to work tireless for the wellbeing of both the association and
also our members including making sure that your daughter;
Jaspreet follows your footsteps in making a difference to the com-
munity and also here at DSA(S).
It is such invaluable contributions and advocacy that Dr Singh was recognised and lauded on 28th Nov ’15 (Sat) at the 25th Anniversary of Singapore Sikh Education Fund and the Launch of Commemora-tive Book of Sikh community’s achievement. Dr Singh and Jaspreet were also mentioned by Prime Minister; Lee Hsien Loong speech at the event. Following the event, many major local media also featured Dr Singh and Jaspreet in their reporting of the event.
"A quote from Dr Balbir:
“Being recognised for contributions towards the Disability sector and Nation Building has been very hum-
bling and motivating. All this cannot be achieved in isolation. For effective advocacy, one needs the backing of a team, unconditional family support, a receptive Government, supportive friends and observing persons with special needs [ especially those with Down syndrome ] be valued and achieve their maximum potential.
Thank you Team DSA , the Sekhon family , all people in the Disability sector , my many confidants and all per-sons with Down syndrome.”
Page 3 December 2015 Down Syndrome Assoc iat ion (S ingapore)
“More Than Words” Programme
Left: Participants engag-
ing in visual and tactile
sensory work.
Right: Participants trum-
peting like elephants at
the end of a song-based
activity exercising their
gross motor functions.
In Aug ‘15, the Tan Chin Tuan Foundation (TCTF) invited DSA once again to be part of their “More Than Words” programme. This is a literacy-based, dramatic programme which would encourages a love of reading among participants and offer them an opportunity to perform onstage. We were one of several organisations which TCTF sponsored for this programme.
The enrichment company, ACTS of Life was brought in to run the programme for our members. They built upon their experiences with us last year to attempt to further craft a programme tailored to our members’ needs. TCTF also took a very hands-on approach in ensuring that the programme was ran well.
Every Saturday afternoon from 15th Aug – 10th Oct ‘15, instructors Ann Rodis and Su from ACTS of Life ran 7 sessions each for 2 classes of DSA members of aged 4-9 years respectively. The first class (1:30–2:45 pm) had 7 participants, while the second (2:45–4:00 pm) had 9. So a total of 16 DSA members took part in this pro-gramme, which was run at DSA Centre @ J8, Bishan.
The classes all revolved around the cheerful, optimistic, colourful story, “ELMER,” by David McKee. The story – featuring Elmer the multi-coloured elephant and his jungle friends – was about embracing diversity and ac-cepting differences. The programme gave participants an opportunity to practice skills related to:
(i) literacy (participants practiced reading the story), (ii) music and gross motor sequencing (participants sang and moved to songs related to the story), (iii) sensory stimulation (participants got to feel various materials used to represent different jungle flora and fauna), and (iv.) fine motor work (participants got to draw, colour, and do paper crafts of different scenes from the story).
2nd Volunteers’ Orientation
The 2nd Volunteers’ Orientation was held on 24th Oct ’15. It
started off with a tour around the premises, and allowed the
volunteers to observe the Yummy Tummy Food Preparation
Class so that they have the first-hand experience in interacting
with our persons with Down syndrome.
During the orientation, the volunteers got to understand more
about DSA’s cause as well as the common Do’s and Don’ts
when it comes to interacting with persons with Down syn-
drome. The orientation ended with a sharing session between
staff and some volunteers who have participated in our recent events.
It was heart-warming to have many volunteers who believe in our cause, and hopefully become ambassadors to spread the awareness on Down syndrome.
Page 4 December 2015 Down Syndrome Assoc iat ion (S ingapore)
Purple Parade 2015
Above: Group photo of DSA Drum Prodigy before hitting the stage
with their wonderful drum beats.
Above: DSA Fusion Dancers donned on colourful costumes
and mesmerized the audience with their graceful moves.
The Purple Parade was back this year, bigger and better! It was an event to “Support inclusion, celebrate
abilities”, held on the 31st Oct ‘15 at Hong Lim Park and the turnout was so much more this year too.
DSA drummers and dancers were invited to perform at the event again, receiving loud applauses and cheers
from the audience. It was such a great experience and encouragement from the crowd that spur our mem-
bers in giving their best in every performance.
DTZ Essay Competition & Prize Presentation During the June school holidays, DTZ Property Network (DTZ) organised an essay competition for all DSA
members. A total of 26 members submitted their masterpieces titled “My Dream”.
On 7th Nov ‘15, participating members together with their families were invited for the prize presentation
and a buffet lunch for their participation. The members took pride in their works and it was heartening to
read what the members’ dreams are. DSA(S) would like to thank DTZ for its many initiatives, support and
being a valued partner of DSA.
Prize winners:
Ages 18 and below Ages above 18
1st prize Allan Cai Chen Wan Yi
2nd prize Grace Gan Jia En Hasaan A. Hasan
3rd prize Anna Ow Brandon Wong
From left: First prize winners in the respective age
categories, Allan Cai and Chen Wan Yi.
Above: Group photo of participants with represen-
tatives from DTZ.
Page 5 December 2015 Down Syndrome Assoc iat ion (S ingapore)
NEW Infant Toddler Programme (ITP)
After much anticipation by parents of young children, the
new person and family-centred programme was started on
16th Nov ‘15 with an enrollment of 11 families. The pro-
gramme provides one weekly centre-based group session
and one fortnightly home-based session.
On 12th Nov ‘15, Maureen Corby (DSA’s Educational Con-
sultant for ITP) and Susan Thomas (DSA’s Early Interven-
tion Teacher) conducted a parent education session to
brief families on the approach of the programme. Eighteen
families attended the session and responded positively
with much keen interest in the programme..
An insight of the programme from Early Intervention Teacher, Susan Thomas: “We have been having lots of
fun in the new Infant and Toddler Programme (ITP) and I am covering a lot of Singapore while I do the home
visits too. I would like to thank all the families for making me feel welcome and I am excited about seeing the
progress you and your children will be making over the next year.
The Infant and Toddler Programme (ITP) takes a lot of commitment from the families but I am sure you will find
the effort worth it as we see the changes taking place progressively. Play is a child’s work and your children
have been working very hard as have all the adults! The two hour sessions are busy and as we all get to know
each other better, they will become more and more valuable. The success of Early Intervention is based on col-
laboration between families and professionals.”
*** For more information or enquiries on Infant Toddler Programme (ITP). kindly contact us at T: 6500 9321.
SDSC’s 10th National Disability League Tenpin
Bowling Tournament
On 26th Sept ‘15 (Sat), four DSA Members attended the 10th National Disability League (NDL) Tenpin Bowl-ing Tournament organised by the Singapore Disability Sports Council (SDSC). They were: (1) Reuben Khanal (Male, Singles, Under-17 category), (2) Robert Edwards (Male, Singles, Under-17 category), (3) Mason Chin (Male, Singles, Open category), and (4) Toh Wei Kang (Male, Singles, Open category).
Reuben Khanal won the Gold medal for his category and Robert Edwards won Silver! DSA is proud of its members’ participation and victories and hopes they encourage others to also actively participate in sport-ing competitions and flying the DSA banner high!
Left: Mason Chin in action.
Right:: Reuben Khanal and
Robert Edwards posing with
their medals and NTUC
vouchers
Page 6 December 2015 Down Syndrome Assoc iat ion (S ingapore)
EDUCATION ENRICHMENT PROGRAMME (EEP)
AEP’s Handmade Marbled Tea Light Vases
The Children’s Education Services revived the EEP in Sept ’15 with the running of a module on “Money”. 9
children were enrolled in 3 classes of 10 sessions each from Aug to Nov ‘15. Teacher, Shobana Nair en-
gages the children with hands-on activity that integrates literacy and numeracy. Children learn to identify
coins and perform transactions, giving them a basic understanding the concept of money. Parents of the
younger children also accompanied them and supported their learning.
A new 3-sessions module on “Health and Hygiene” would run during the year-end school vacation. There
would also be a concurrent re-run of the Money Module (7 sessions). So don’t miss it, sign up now!
In the spirit of giving and showing appreciation to DSA’s partners whom have been supporting us throughout
the year, members of Adult Enhancement Program ( AEP ) decided to create some exquisite designs on Tea
Light Vases as gifts to these partners. These exquisite Tea Light Vases will be given away between the months
of November and December as part of DSA’s Year End Partners’ Visits.
Each Tea Light Vases is uniquely different with various shades of amazing colours that highlighted the delicate
flowers on the vases. With just a couple of drops of nail polish into a bowl of water, members would then dip
the vases and give them a swirl to create a marbling effect. The result is, one of a kind beautiful Handmade
Marbled Tea Light Vase. Well done guys!
AEP Members with their hand-
made tea light vases and some
of the finished vases on display.
Page 7 December 2015 Down Syndrome Assoc iat ion (S ingapore)
Nov - Dec 2015 School Holidays Programme
No. Holiday Pro-
gramme Age
Group Min. Par-ticipants
Max. Partici-pants
Instructor(s) No. of
Sessions Day(s) Dates
1 Aspiration Camp
14 yrs & up
10 20 S'pore Poly Comm Svc & Cul-tural Club Student Volunteers
1 Thu, Fri,
Sat 17 Dec, 18 Dec,
19 Dec
2 Clay Art 10 yrs &
up 5 8 May Tang 4
Mon, Thu, Fri
7 Dec, 10 Dec, 11 Dec, & 14 Dec
3 Decoupage Pouch Making
10 yrs & up
5 8 May Tang 4 Mon, Thu,
Fri 23 Nov, 26 Nov, 27 Nov, 30 Nov
4 FunFit 5 yrs &
up 8 15 Thomas Poon 4 Wed
2 Dec, 9 Dec, 16 Dec, 23 Dec
5 Henna Design 10 yrs &
up 5 10
Global Indian Int'l Schl Stu-dent Volunteers led by Sim-rita Agrawal & Leera Sharma
2 Fri, Mon 11 Dec, 14 Dec
6 Indian Dance 10 yrs &
up 5 10
Global Indian Int'l Schl Stu-dent Volunteers led by Sim-rita Agrawal & Leera Sharma
4 Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri
30 Nov, 1 Dec, 2 Dec, 4 Dec
7 Magic in My Hands Pup-petry & Music
5 yrs & up
8 10 Shamroz Khan & Ranjini Moorthy from ShiSha Produc-tion
4 Tue, Thu
24 Nov, 26 Nov, 1 Dec, 3 Dec, 8 Dec, 10 Dec, & 15 Dec (last session is 2
hrs)
8 SRJC Soccer 10 yrs &
up 8 15
SRJC Soccer Club Student Vol-unteers
4 Tue, Thu 1 Dec, 8 Dec, 10
Dec, 22 Dec
9 The Joy of Mu-sic (Senior)
10 yrs & up
6 10 Ian Low 4 Thu, Tue 26 Nov, 3 Dec, 10
Dec, 15 Dec
10 The Joy of Mu-sic (Junior)
4-9 yrs 6 10 Ian Low 4 Tue 24 Nov, 1 Dec, 8
Dec, 15 Dec
*** All the above information is tentative and may be subject to change closer to the actual date of the
event. For more details and signups, kindly contact Gerarddyn at email: gerarddyn@downsyndrome-
singapore.org or call 6500 9304
Page 8 December 2015
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