Imagine a group of children with different types of special needs, all with smiles on their face awaiting their turn to receive gifts given by the generous public.

This is exactly what happened at Wonder Kids Special Training Centre on 12th January 2022 – as a result of an event hosted by Dawn Bridge, with the help of the public, brought the feeling of inclusiveness, joy and warmth to special needs children and their families.

<LOVE • Pass It On> An Event on Awareness and Education

*(From left to right: Alvin, Yoli, Mr Foo, Mr Wong, Keith, Niick, Alice Teh stand in front of the booth with dozens of special gifts at the RnF Mall Johor Bahru.*

Festivals can be fun for the entire family, but more often than not, the same cannot be said for families with special needs children. The condition and behaviour of these children can be unpredictable. At the same time, due to limited inclusiveness, awareness and acceptance from the public society to the special needs communities, a lot of parents chose to stay at home and remain socially isolated in order to avoid being confronted with judgemental eyes.

On 8th January 2022, an event – “LOVE • Pass It On”, was organized by Dawn Bridge, and co-hosted RnF Mall Johor Bahru and Cinemates Pictures. We aim to make a lasting difference for the special needs communities.

During the event, our special guest of the day and friendly angel, Alice Teh along with the team shared information to the public about the event, increasing the awareness of special needs children in the general public, at the same time, encouraging the public to take action to show their love and support towards the families.

Much to our surprise, after listening to a brief sharing, majority of the public members willingly visited stores around RnF Mall and handpicked gifts for the children. Within the span of 10 hours, we’ve received more than 50 gifts where all the gifts were given to special needs children of Wonder Kids Special Learning Centre!

“All children deserve a chance to smile and feel the joy at this special time of year,” said Dawn Bridge’s founder, Mr Foo. “We want families with special needs children to feel the happiness just like everyone else during this season. Giving them hope, inspiring them and let them feel included. We are thankful to have these incredible organisations to support this cause.”

*Left picture: Alice Teh stands in front of booth with gifts; Right picture: Alice Teh shares event information to the public*.

“I feel its very important to educate the public about the special needs children. Honestly, I wouldn’t have known about this group of children exists if not for this event!” Said Jie Shi, one of the generous public member who bought gifts for the children after listening to our “angel’s” sharing.

“It is really heartwarming to see how happy they are, they really have the right to be happy just like us, especially during festivals like this!” Jie Shi add on after watching a few short clips by Dawn Bridge.

Beauty Lies In The Eyes Of The Beholder, Happiness Is Found In The Smiles Of Special Needs Children

On 12th Jan, our Bridgers personally handed all the gifts to Wonder Kids Special Training Centre. The children were delighted when they saw our Bridgers came with gifts in hand – just like Santa Claus! Their smiles melted our hearts and it is those smiles exactly what makes us love what we do so much!

“Being able to see their smiles, they are filled with joy when you arrive and when you play with them, warms your heart.” said Niick, our Bridger and the coordinator of this event.

*(Left picture: Doris prepares to hand out the gifts to kids with special needs at the Wonder Kids. ; Right picture: Kid of the Wonder Kids receives the gift.)*

We also had the opportunity to see various types of education techniques and training programs for special needs children at Wonder Kids. It’s incredible to see how the type of education that follows all the children’s growth has been implemented, through designated planning and various activities that support their overall development

*Doris passing the appropriate toys to the child with special needs.*

“Exclusion is disabling. Feeling excluded can affect one’s spiritual, emotional, and mental well-being,” said Doris, the head of Wonder Kids Training Center.

“Families expressed their children were over the moon. We received so much love and light!”

Doris expresses her interest in future collaboration opportunities for special needs children in the future.

“I’ve always been passionate about special needs and establishing inclusive environments. Now more than ever, we’ve seen all these changes in the world and we need to change the narrative, not just in our community, but in Worldwide as well.”

To learn more about the organization, or to get involved, visit www.dawnbridge.com.my. Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/dawnbridge, or on Instagram at www.instagram.com/dawnbridge_my