It’s not our disabilities but our abilities that count !
A report on our 5th Annual Special Mom Awards held on August 28, 2022 where we honored 15 incredible women and their families.
Parenting is never easy. Every day, families face a range of pleasant to not-so-pleasant emotions as they strive to live together. Each member is irreplaceable and fulfils a unique role. But what happens when parents realize that their child has difficulties? They now have even larger challenges to overcome. Challenges they were not prepared for.
We could never truly understand what the parents of a special child go through. It’s not uncommon for them to feel exhausted and stretched beyond their limit. But, as in any difficult life situation, it’s not the emotions themselves but what we choose to do with them that ultimately charts the course of our lives.
That’s why our Special Moms are so special!
They have learned never to take things for granted. Nothing is ordinary or insignificant. Everything has a purpose. They see things like ignorance, cruelty, and prejudice and yet rise above them. They have learned to access strength from above, allowing themselves to be transformed through their suffering. Every day, they manage situations that a regular parent would think is impossible. This makes them women of incredible strength. Women we seek to honor each year through our Special Mom Award.
Our 2021 awards function was held on August 28, 2022 at Quality Inn Sabari, T. Nagar, Chennai. We are very grateful to the event sponsor, Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives (APPI), and to our Chief Guest, Mrs. V R Jayalakshmi, Joint Director National Nutrition Mission from the Directorate of Integrated Child Development Services, Chennai, and Guest of Honor, Mrs. S Suryakala, District Child Protection Officer of the District Child Protection Unit, Chennai, who gave away the prizes together with Sri Arunodayam’s long-standing donors. We are grateful to every donor, sponsor, staff member, well-wisher and friend who made this ceremony a grand success!
At the ceremony, we welcomed these amazing women and their families into our lives: Bakkiyalakshmi Raji, mother of Dillibabu (17 yrs), Tiruvallur Dist., Bharathi, mother of Kishore (15 yrs) and Kristi (11 yrs), Tiruvallur Dist., Gayathri, mother of Gaurav (13 yrs), Tiruvallur Dist., Indira, mother of Premkumar (23 yrs), Chennai, Jayakantha, mother of Parthipan (22 yrs), Kanchipuram Dist., Jayasri, mother of Priyanka (25 yrs), Kanchipuram Dist., Malar, mother of Vignesh (24 yrs) and Mythily (17 yrs), Tiruvallur Dist., Mallika Banu, mother of Mohamed Asiff (17 yrs), Chennai, Radha, mother of Easudoss (19 yrs) and Jenifer (16 yrs, deceased), Tiruvallur Dist., Sudha, mother of Indumathi (24 yrs), Tiruvallur Dist., Suganthi, mother of Ajay Aravindh (19 yrs), Kanchipuram Dist., Sundari, mother of Bavani (24 yrs) and Selvi (21 yrs, visually impaired) Tiruvallur Dist., Susila, mother of Kameshwari (24 yrs), Tiruvallur Dist., Uma, mother of Abin (20 yrs), Kanyakumari Dist., and Usha Panneerselvam, mother of Preethi (20 yrs) and Kishore (18 yrs), Chennai.
The awardees’ stories (captured on film) were presented during the ceremony. It was a moving experience. As their many trials and challenges came to life we saw wonderful moments when their splendid characters shone through. It’s these amazing experiences that we want to share with the world. The high emotion of the films were balanced with scintillating performances by our children and the afternoon ended with a grand lunch for all.
Hear it from our Special Moms
There are thousands upon thousands of families in our country raising children with disabilities. At a time in history where the rich are getting richer and the poor, poorer, the gap is widening with many of these families literally falling through the cracks! We hope our Special Mom films inspire you to take positive action in developing a society that is truly inclusive – a society that truly accepts them for who they are.
Bakkiyalakshmi Raji
Bakkiyalakshmi’s son, Dillibabu, is intellectually disabled. His parents were unaware of his condition when they returned home after his birth. They quickly realized that something was terribly wrong as the child struggled to breathe. Dillibabu underwent heart…
Bharathi S
Bharathi’s first child, Kishore, appeared healthy at the beginning but developed neurological problems that made him lose his speech and ability to walk. Her second child, a girl, is normal but her third child, a boy, is intellectually disabled. Both her sons…
Gayathri P
Gayathri has two children. Her firstborn, Gaurav, could not speak until he was four years old. He also has ADHD and an autistic disorder. Gayathri had heard of OLR Special School at Madurai and decided to admit Gaurav there to receive special education…
Indira P
Indira’s first child, Premkumar, suffered seizures after birth. He was in the ICU for a couple of days and his prognosis wasn’t good. A full body scan revealed that the child would have to receive physiotherapy. He couldn’t achieve the regular milestones…
Jayakantha R
Jayakantha has two sons of which the younger one, Parthiban, is a special child. The child did not cry at birth as all babies do, and was kept in an incubator for 22 days. He was diagnosed as a special needs child but the doctors pacified her that he would become …
Jayasri S
Jayasri wasn’t informed of her daughter Priyanka’s disability when she was born. The child did not cry at birth and could not achieve the development milestones as normal children do. The doctors she visited were not able to guide her properly. Until she was five years old…
Malar M
Malar has three children, two of which have intellectual disabilities – Vignesh and Mythili. This is another case of a consanguineous marriage as Malar was married to her maternal uncle. The children did not cry at birth and it appears that this is a vital clue for mothers to…
Mallika Banu S
Mallika Banu’s mother passed away when she was just 17 years old. She continued pursuing a degree and took up a part-time job, marrying shortly after. Mallika Banu had severe depression during her first pregnancy and her child also did not behave normally. Two and…
Radha M
Radha has six children of which the third (a daughter) and the fifth (a son) are intellectually disabled. She lost her daughter to tuberculosis but her son, Jesudoss, is alive. Jesudoss developed a heart problem at birth and was in and out of hospital multiple times. He is still…
Sudha R
Sudha married young. Her firstborn, Indhumathi, is intellectually disabled. At birth, the child developed jaundice and had serious health issues. As Indhumathi grew, her parents took her to Hope Centre in Anna Nagar for physiotherapy and later to Anbumalar Special School, which was closer…
Suganthi S
In the eighth month of her pregnancy, a scan revealed that Suganthi’s child, Ajay, had agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC), a brain disorder in which the tissue that connects the left and right sides of the brain (its hemispheres) is partially or completely missing. This condition is caused by…
Sundari T
Sundari married her maternal uncle and they had two girls – Bhavani and Selvi. Bhavani was born normal but had continuous fever for over ten days which caused multiple problems and development delay. The doctors confirmed that the consanguineous marriage had a large role to play…
Susila R
Susila and her husband have three children. She had married her maternal uncle. Her daughter, Kamleshwari, was born with a cleft palate and is intellectually disabled. The child underwent multiple plastic surgeries to correct the deformity on her…
Uma R
Uma comes from a large family but after her father’s second marriage, she and her younger brother lived with their grandmother. Her marriage turned out to be a nightmare of violence and abuse but she did not confide in her family or her neighbors…
Usha Paneerselvam
Usha’s daughter, Preethi, appeared normal at birth but problems arose after six months. The child never smiled, often had fever, and did not appear to have good coordination. Preethi developed brain fever when she was one year…
Mrs. Mallika Banu
[Special Mom Award 2021 Finalist]
“Raising a child with an intellectual disability is a huge responsibility but it comes with some wonderful rewards. The more I serve my child the deeper my love grows, becoming one of my greatest successes. I celebrate even the smallest of advancements. I take nothing for granted. I know how to be truly grateful which gives me the strength to carry on.”
Mrs. Usha Paneerselvam
[Special Mom Award 2021 Finalist]
Dr. Aacha Arumugasamy
[Founder and Director of Sri Kumaran Health Centre, Retteri, Chennai]
Mrs. Karpagam
[Guest of Honor and Sponsor]
