Interactive, sensory room for children with autism in Palestine
This campaign has ended on 12-11-2018
Campaign by: Raseel Association
Campaign Summary
Raseel organization is working to establish an affordable sensory room for children with autism in Palestine. The goal of a sensory room is to provide a safe place for children with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) to help them calm or stimulate their senses.
Problem
After conducting a research we were able to conclude that there are many challenges related to the rehabilitation of autistic children. We in Palestine do suffer from the following: Lack of awareness about such a disease, the high cost of diagnosing and treatment, the lack of equipment and staff for helping the diagnosed children, the absence of statistics about the number of children with autism.
Solution
We decided to establish sensory room. Sensory rooms are designed to assist someone in organizing, calming, relaxing, and seeking out sensory information. The goal of a sensory room is to provide a safe place where someone who has Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) can go when they need to either calm or stimulate their senses. They can be as varied as the people who use them. Sensory rooms provide a great variety of activities to help engage the senses.
Funding this project will provide access to treatment for 50 children per month, 240 sessions per month and will be provided to children for a small amount of money ($ 5), to make sure that each child can have his treatment and to ensure the continuity of service for the next five years with periodic updates.
About Raseel Association
Raseel is a Palestinian charity association that exists for the cause of helping children diagnosed with autism in the west bank. We are a center of excellence having highly trained professionals to provide accredited programs to support individuals with Autism and their families, to be an internationally recognized Autism consultancy center for the region.
Number of supporters
raised out of $15,000
Countries
I learned how to formulate a message that inspires to address a large audience. I also learned the importance of persistence and transparency.
How do Palestinians give locally during Ramadan?
“From our people to our people” is what a working mother of four had to say about why she does what she does during the month of Ramadan. Nassim Zitawi, a Palestinian woman living in Ramallah initially started a project with her friend to cook homemade food to those in need. Unfortunately, when her friend was diagnosed with cancer, the project had to stop, but Nassim decided to continue by collecting money from friends at work, buying goods for families which lack support, and sharing leftovers from “Iftar”to give to those that would appreciate the gesture.
Nassim focuses on families of orphans and widows in unnoticed places and refugee camps like Qadoora Al Jalazon. Her project receives the greatest support during Ramadan, as she thinks that Ramadan is when people feel the need to give out more than they do in regular months. However, she doesn’t like to call what she does a “project” as she feels it’s a duty rather than a project. Her friends send their kids with her to help during Ramadan to become more appreciative of their lives.
When I joined her on a few rounds this Ramadan, I thought it would be a simple procedure of knocking on doors and handing out packages to families. However Nassim doesn’t simply deliver food, she forms a personal relationship with each family– the mothers who lost their young to cancer, kids who became orphans a few months back, and the old lady who has been abandoned by her sons.
All these stories are now personal to Nassim, she becomes their friend and they become her family. What I noticed from this experience is that Nassim and her daughter Tala never let their social status get in the way of interacting with people; they instantly make everyone comfortable, and in return, we were invited into each house we stopped by! Nassim has helped hundreds of families since she started six years ago.
“Religion is a matter of treatment,” says Khalil Kawa, a Palestinian Christian from Nablus, who finds Ramadan to be the perfect opportunity to erase the stigma behind religious differences. Alongside his friends, Khalil distributes dates and bottles of water to cars stuck in traffic during the Maghrib Adan, which is when Muslims break their fast.
He began this project using his own money, and as his team grew, other people in the community, both Christian and Muslim, started donating so that he’d have enough supplies to hand out. Even a priest gathered supplies to distribute alongside Khalil and Mosques have joined as well.
When I asked Khalil about his motivation, he said, “We love our country and the people of this country. Sometimes we see unnecessary discrimination and sectarianism, which is why I do what I do.” He appreciates that other people started joining this initiative and they are able to have a larger impact. Khalil also acknowledges the negative feedback, he commented “I look at 95% and ignore the 5%”. I was very touched with his attitude towards negativity as he never allows it to get in between what he does and the message he carries with his actions. For Khalil “Palestine is different from the rest of the world.”
Do you know of other local community projects during this month?
We are certain there are many more! Share them with us here for inspiration. And Ramadan Kareem!
Zeina Melhem is a sophomore media student at al-Quds Bard College. She enjoys investigative journalism and writing and looks forward to being a part of crowdsolving projects that support her local community.