The handiwork of persons with disabilities came to the fore yesterday when the Open Doors Centre in Sophia showcased their talent at an Open Day.
During the event, Norris Cummings, a former student of the Centre, who suffers from cerebral palsy, put on a display to show that despite his disability, he could tackle a range of tasks by doing almost everything with his toes, including writing and typing. The 21-year-old demonstrated his abilities by taking off his boots, operating the mouse and typing his name, all within minutes, and then he wrote his name and telephone numbers, using pen and paper.
The Centre, which is a national vocational training centre for persons with disabilities, offers four courses: Electronics, Carpentry/Joinery, Information Technology (IT), and Garment Construction/Craft; and there were displays in each of these areas.
In the electrical area there were various wired circuits and an amplifier set up by the students themselves, while the carpentry students displayed their construction of ironing boards, showcases and other wooden items.
The Information Techno-logy students also showed their capabilities in the display of various fliers, business cards, calendars, greeting cards, etc, which they created on the computers. The craft department also showed tremendous talent and innovation as the all-female class displayed craft items as well as garments. There were cushions, stuffed animals (made from face rags and wire hangers), aprons, school uniforms, and even little smock dresses for babies. These items, it was understood, are usually made to order and will be available at the graduation ceremony come November.
The Open Doors Centre was established in 2001 in D’Urban Street by the Italian Non-Governmental Organisation AIFO –Associazione Italiana Amici di Raoul Follerau. It started out as a project, and was later handed over to the Ministry of Health and co-financed by the European Union.
The Centre opens its doors to persons with disabilities such as speech and hearing impediments; physical, learning, and visual disabilities; epilepsy; and other disabilities affecting endurance or general health.
