KUCHING: Winning the Anugerah Pertubuhan Cemerlang in conjunction with the Sarawak Women’s Day 2022 celebration in Miri this week is a proud achievement for Kuching Autistic Association (KAA), said its president, Dr Catherine Chen Jean Ai.
“KAA is greatly honoured to receive this award and would like to express our deepest appreciation to the Sarawak government and the Ministry of Women, Early Childhood and Community Well-being Development, for the continuous support and assistance in realising our vision.
“This award is a testament to how our KAA team of staff, teachers, students, committee members and parents have collectively worked together to make a difference to the lives of children and adults with autism.
“In KAA, we want to enable people with autism to achieve their full potential.
“Early intervention is very important, and we put a lot of effort on our early intervention programmes for children aged 3 years old to 12 years old. Pre-KAA also has living skills and pre-vocational skills training for students aged 13 and above. Living skills is important, so that our students can take steps towards more independent living,” she said to New Sarawak Tribune on Wednesday (March 9).
Besides that, Dr Chen said the award was also a recognition of KAA’s activities and programmes over the last 23 years.
“Apart from the Elementary Instruction and Secondary Instruction Programmes, KAA has a Sheltered Workshop that currently employs young adults with autism.
“One of KAA’s outstanding and unique projects is the Autism Art Gallery. The Autism Art Gallery was launched in October 2018 at Hilton Hotel, Kuching. In December 2019, the Gallery moved to KAA’s premises in Jln Desa Wira, Lorong 15, Batu Kawa.
“Today, the gallery showcases artworks, beadwork, lanyards and merchandise featuring our students’ designs, such as mugs, bags, cards and many others.
“All of the items are available for sale, and the students receive a commission for their work, and this is a source of income, and serves as an incentive for our students,” she said.
She said KAA also has a Vegetable Garden and Garden Shed, where the students look after potted plants while a small mushroom growing project has been started too.
“There is so much more KAA wants to do for the autistic community. We are honoured to be recognised for our achievements, but at the same time, this challenges us to move forward and do even more.”
She said the award belongs to everyone who have worked tirelessly over the years to make what they have today a reality.
“More than 60 per cent of KAA’s annual operating budget comes from donations, grants and corporate sponsorship. KAA is deeply grateful to everyone who has shared our vision and supported us in our journey in ‘Embracing Autism, Transforming Lives’,” she said.
Meanwhile, KAA’s programme coordinator, Cherrie Valerie Chong said the award symbolises the strong teamwork in KAA in making things happen.
“We are not doing this for our own benefits, but we are doing our best for each of our students,” she said.
KAA’s head teacher for the Secondary Instruction Programme, Lomiw Frederick Roman said she shed tears of joy upon hearing the announcement of KAA’s Excellence Award.
“It’s an overwhelming experience as this is the moment we celebrated together. The teamwork among everyone and the endless support, we are very grateful. Such a proud achievement for KAA,” she said.
The KAA training centre is presently providing individualised special education and training for 105 children and 11 adults with autism, aged between 3 years and 40 years and employs 29 teaching staff.
For more information on KAA, check the website kaa.org.my or its Facebook and Instagram pages.
