By Sonya Gorman
(Headliners)
Whizz Kidz is a national charity which aims to equip families who can't get the adequate equipment such as personally designed wheelchairs off the NHS. Secondly it also provides disability awareness through training packages and also through the Kids Board which Miro Griffiths deals with.
Before meeting up with Miro and the rest of the Whizz Kidz on the Kids Board in City Hall, we were really nervous. Probably because there was no one to meet us so we had to approach the group ourselves. We didn’t know what to expect. Standing from a distance, we noticed one of the members had fallen from their wheelchair but we were too conscious to offer help because we didn’t know if our help would be appreciated.
During the meeting itself, Mark the facilitator, ensured that we remained separated in each of the activities that took place. This helped us feel like we fitted in because we were able to offer ideas of our own when brainstorming the “Don’t Push Me Around” campaign and we no longer felt like intruders merely sitting in on a meeting, taking notes.
The activities really helped us bond with many of the Whizz Kidz and because of this we were then invited to a karaoke party that Mark and the other facilitators were holding at the Holiday Inn later on that evening. This was where we were able to interact with certain members and interview them more personally, particularly Ambassador for Northern Ireland, Gareth, who is based in Coleraine.
They surprised us by having the DJ introduce two of the charity’s close friends taking the mic to sing “Cheeky Girls” and when we realized we were the object of attention we felt immediately accepted, however we vowed revenge and in turn had several members sing Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” in which we were roped into due to the fact that this was the last song we would hear that night. On our knees, we no longer noticed the wheelchairs.
Arriving we were anxious, leaving we were privileged.
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