23/09/2021
Hanoon is a 14 year old teenager living in Kudahuvadhoo, who happens to be a hardcore Christiano Ronaldo fan. Hanoon keeps up to date with the latest sports news - especially football. In his free time he plays & participates in football activities organized in his island.
I met Hanoon through an office colleague - Hanoon’s uncle. I came to find out that Hanoon was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy at a very young age. Cerebral palsy is a group of disorders that affect movement and muscle tone or posture. It's caused by damage that occurs to the immature, developing brain, most often before birth. Signs and symptoms appear during infancy or preschool years. In general, cerebral palsy causes impaired movement associated with exaggerated reflexes, floppiness or spasticity of the limbs and trunk, unusual posture, involuntary movements, unsteady walking, or some combination of these.
Despite Hanoon’s disability, he has been actively trying to improve his condition because he has a dream that he is not ready to give up on. His dream is to play for a prestigious club or join the National team. When I think about this boy, I see a part of my younger self in him. I too have cerebral palsy, when I was a teenager I never got the opportunity to participate and I always had to sit on the bench watching others play. Because nobody wanted to see me fall and hurt myself. Nobody wanted to end a match with a score of 01-16, because I failed to defend the goal.
Things have changed for the better. People are getting aware about Persons with Disabilities and the importance of creating an inclusive and accessible communities. However we still don't have rehabilitation facilities in the Maldives that can provide Hanoon and others like him with Orthotic devices. Orthotics (Greek: Ορθός, romanized: ortho, lit. 'to straighten, to align') is a medical specialty that focuses on the design and application of orthoses. An orthosis (plural: orthoses) is "an externally applied device used to influence the structural and functional characteristics of the neuromuscular and skeletal system".
Often as a kid I used to lose balance and fall down when I couldn't place the palm of my left foot on the ground properly while trying to walk or run. Because I was only able to touch 2 toes on the ground. I ended up being wheeled in to places or hopping on my right foot. When I was in India for my rehabilitation my parents bought me the best orthotic devices that they could afford that I had to wear throughout the day. My parents ended up spending around $3000 just for the orthotic devices. After 3 years of continuous use of orthotics combined with physiotherapy I was able to walk and run without losing my balance. Later on life I even managed to balance motor bikes and eventually got my license.
I am trying to procure a few different types of orthotic devices (similar to what I used) for Hanoon from abroad. My goal is to raise a fund of 40,000 MVR to help him. I understand that it is a huge amount to ask for, but these devices are expensive to make and customize. However it is a necessity for his rehabilitation. His dream of becoming a successful football player outweighs the cost of these devices.
You can donate to the account details below or contact me on 9195197 to help.
BML Account:
7703516259001
Muaviyath Mohamed Didi
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