Olivia Ye remembers how painful it was when her daughter Natania was excluded from an event organized by her daycare. All the other children were invited to perform on stage for the parents — but the teacher asked that Natania, who has autism, not participate because she couldn’t follow along. “It was heartbreaking, but I understood,” Ye says.
Feelings of social rejection, not belonging and lack of opportunities are all too common for families who have loved ones with developmental disabilities. Children and youth with diverse abilities are often left behind in traditional educational and child-care systems.
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But this is changing with the help of the Social Diversity for Children Foundation (SDC), a Canadian charity based in Vancouver. Founded by David James Wang, the SDC aims to empower children with all abilities.
At a young age, Wang saw that his brother, who has developmental disabilities, was always the happiest kid around. He noticed that it was his brother’s connections with others that helped him be happier and grow without any fear.
When he was 15 years old, Wang recruited his high school friends to facilitate a music program that helped kids with all needs connect and socialize with each other. Since then, the SDC has grown to offer hundreds of programs that nurture kids out of their comfort zone with patience, compassion, meaningful connection and interesting activities, such as experiential learning through virtual reality, drama performances and a specialized math program.
“I always tell my brother, it doesn’t matter what the end result is, you just have to try. The more you try, the better you become,” Wang says.
He shares the story of one young participant, Erin, who was afraid to touch anything because she feared not doing it perfectly. Erin didn’t want to use scissors to cut a piece of paper in half, Wang recalls, because she might not cut it straight. “But now she’s teaching others how to do it… and just based on that confidence, she can now challenge herself to do more and more,” Wang says.
Ye’s daughter did eventually get to perform on stage, and Ye gives credit to the SDC for helping Natania develop her self-esteem and achieve that milestone.
“Kids with special needs didn’t feel that much love in other environments because they were different,” Ye says, adding that it was touching for her to see the level of care offered by SDC volunteers.
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With in-person school and programs limited, the need for socially inclusive programs for children with special needs has increased since the start of the pandemic. In the last two years, the SDC provided programming, including remote classes, to more than 2,000 kids.
On September 3, the SDC will be hosting the 2022 Brivia Once Upon a Shine Gala presented by BakerWest Real Estate and Vancouver Career College at the Westin Bayshore in Vancouver. The annual fundraising event provides a platform for children and youth of all abilities to show off their talents to a thousand people.
“To see that many people cheering them on, clapping for them and supporting them, they get such a self-esteem boost,” Wang says.
“We’re extremely privileged and honoured to be able to take part in this very important event,” says Vincent Kou, chief investment and development officer at Brivia Group. The Montreal-based Canadian real estate development and investment group is the title sponsor for the gala, and supports projects across Canada that promote social diversity and inclusion.
Brivia Group also recently announced its expansion to Western Canada, starting with the company’s Vancouver project, Curv, a 60-storey residential development that’s set to be the tallest passive house building in the world.
“The support of the community is really the key to how we’re able to grow and maintain our programs,” Wang says. “So my thanks to the community.”
To learn more about how you can help support the Social Diversity for Children Foundation’s programs, visit socialdiversity.org.
