As people recognize October 6 as World Cerebral Palsy Day, a Kitchener organization is spreading the message that a diagnosis does not define a person. Sunbeam Community and Development Services hopes to spread the word on how their organization helps support people and their families who are living with the movement disorder. Shawn Hopkins was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy as an infant. “He’s a sweet, sweet little boy and he’s very sociable and he likes to interact with people,” said Shawn’s mom, Shelley. Shawn requires 24-hour care and was introduced to the team at Sunbeam shortly after his diagnosis. “Shawn came to the Sunbeam Centre at two-and-half and they opened the doors with loving arms here for him. He has a lot of needs, and it can be very challenging and very stressful at times and his health has been ever changing throughout the years,” said Shelley. The team at Sunbeam’s Hospital Care Program works with clients like Shawn to try to ensure he can live his life to the fullest. “Behind the diagnosis, it’s a whole person who has the right to be here, who has the right to be disabled and not need to be fixed because they’re not broken,” Lourdes Toro, director of community living services with Sunbeam Community and Development Services, said. Recognizing World Cerebral Palsy Day means working to end stigma, raise awareness and spread a message of inclusion. Experts said it is a common misconception that a non-verbal person cannot communicate. “Many people think that we’re here to help them only. But the truth is, we learn so much from them. We are, experiencing life through the eyes of people that don’t do things the way we do things and yet they thrive. They go to school, they smile, they make their families proud,” Toro said. For Shawn and his family, the hospital program that Sunbeam offers is particularly important to his quality of life. Shelley said hospital stays are anywhere from a few days to several months. “The people that we support go to the hospital, always accompanied by staff who knows them, who can advocate on their behalf, who can express to the medical team at the hospital. ‘How do they experience pain? How do they tell you that they’re uncomfortable?’” said Torro. Shelley said she hopes to keep the conversation going about the disorder. “He’s still a person and likes to be treated like other people do,” said Shelley.
