Blogs

This week "Women, Beauty, Purpose & Empowerment" is featuring Maia Chung from Kingston, Jamaica who is the founder of The Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Foundation and other successful ventures. Maia Chung has brought awareness to the hearts and minds of Jamaicans and the rest of the world and seeks to educate people on Autism. Please stop by and support! Thank you all.
-Moderator, Winsome Campbell-Green

Facts and Achievements:

The Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Foundation is the first Autism focused FOUNDATION to be established in Jamaica.

Celebrate half a decade of existence this year 2013!

In addition The Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Foundation established the Quinn Garren James Smith Computer lab at the special needs institution the Adonijah Group of Schools in July of this year. A new Laptop was used to start the lab off and will be augmented by a new laptop, every six months, until the lab has one dozen such teaching aids found particularly useful for the intellectually challenged.

Also 2012 saw the first Davis Annakie Prosthesis Grant being awarded to an amputee who was rendered disabled due a car collision. This grant was developed and is administered by the MCADF using donor funds from Mr. David Annakie.

Six pieces of new printed resource material were also added to The MCADF Autism Kiosk at the Tom Redcam library this year.

Awards won:
2009 - First Global Woman of Vision - awarded to Maia Chung for her work through the MCADF

2009 - National Commercial Bank Jamaica NCB Nation Building merit award

2010 Maia Chung awarded as a Pioneer in Community Service by Amazing Woman's Day out of Los Angeles California USA

2011: Maia Chung awarded by SEPROD/Lions Club of Mona for outstanding and dedicated attention to the cause of Autism in Jamaica

2012 – Nominated for The Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities, and Agency of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security Lifetime Achievement Award - after only four years of operating

The MCADF has created the only national and regionally aired television series highlighting the Caribbean issues with Autism and disabilities.

The series aired in Jamaica and 22 other countries. Series title: SPECIALS Primary aim: educating the region about Autism needs and issues in the Caribbean.

Created the only nationally aired (Jamaica) Autism focused radio series, also aired internationally via Internet broadcasts. Series title: SPECIALS Primary Aim: to provide usable information about Autism for use by Jamaican parents, teachers and the affected, living with the disorder.

• Raised over 10 million to date (2012) dollars over the 4 years of the Foundation's existence, to:
• provide support funding for Autistic and otherwise disabled people to carry out the following:
• pay for therapies,
• buy wheelchairs,
• parental counseling,
• provided family support where necessary (buying groceries, diapers etc.)
• pay school fees
• facilitate and fund diagnostic services for the poor who are affected
• purchased equipment for Autism and Disabilities schools
• providing furniture items for Autism impacted families who cannot work to purchase

Designed and implemented the Autism and Disabilities Ambassadors Programme - a competition created to increase awareness about Autism and various disabilities. The MCADF also designed to motivate them to seek careers in areas that will provide support for the Autistic for future generations.

The MCADF has help prevent the Deportation of an Autistic Jamaican from the United States - through collaboration with a Washington Immigration clinic which saw MCADF providing testimonies for the case, to prevent his deterioration due to the lack of required care in Jamaica; in comparison with the USA.

Published the publication "Maia's Take" - a non-fiction anthology designed to give the MCADF a sustainable method and instrument to consistently raise funds.

Established The Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Information Kiosk at the St. Andrew Parish Library: Tom Redcam, in Kingston Jamaica - in collaboration with COURTS Jamaica Limited and the Jamaica Library Service - where audio visual equipment have been installed for members of the public to view all our programmes created on the Caribbean Autism situation.

The Foundation donated all our recordings television and radio shows to be used as resources for this kiosk. These are accompanied by book resources and indigenous research.

Directors have been sponsored by Air Jamaica to meet with the Jamaican Consulate in New York to negotiate for books on Autism; to resource the MCADF Kiosk - that trip netted just fewer than two dozen books which are made available to the public through the reference system.

MCADF has an ongoing drive that extends around the world to solicit books on Autism for the kiosk.

Created and launched the Tee Shirt Line Maia Sez to raise money for Autism.

The MCADF created a website for global interface and to highlight the Jamaican situation www.mcautismfoundation.org.

We have created The Maia Chung Autism and Disabilities Foundation You Tube Channel to broaden our information reach; to spark external interest as well as to encourage regional and international collaborations that can further develop the infrastructure here.

Collaborated with the music industry and requested the writing of a Jamaican Disabilities Anthem which was accomplished along with a music video, the first of its kind done out of Jamaica.

Facilitating since 2008 (MCADF est.) a heightened awareness campaign by providing television radio and print media with a database of Autism affected clients who want to share their story so that the issue can receive more necessary attention from Government.

The MCADF has collaborated with other global organizations concerned with getting solutions to the problems caused by the Autism disorder to provide information out of Jamaica; to help create a global picture.

Facilitated the free distribution of Aut-erobics a revolutionary therapy developed by the Autism Expert Joanne Lara, for use among Autistic families and caregivers to assist with the available therapies available in Jamaica.

Designed and carried out the first Autism Roadshow. Done in a radio outside broadcast format staged in several locations in Jamaica where specialists in Autism came on site and provided free consultations to Autistically affected poor.

The MCADF Managing Director undertakes presentations across the island as well as overseas - to groups interested in learning more about Autism and how to cope with living with the disorder especially from the parental perspective (Jamaican).

Established with the international entity Jamaica National Building Society our Every Mickle Makes a Muckle donation account in April 2011 where donors can set up a salary deduction contribution to help fund our work.

The MCADF designed an Autism Public Service Announcement (PSA) programme that is run nationally to help educate the public on the various needs that exist, resources that are available and actions that need to be taken. Aired on radio and soon to be aired on television throughout the region.

Designed and implemented the screening database collection event Autism Splash, in November 2012 funded by the Canadian Government collected data to form a database of Autism cases from across the nation, from which a position paper will be written to lobby government to deal with the more pressing needs of the community.



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