The 7th of June was not yet another day for the nine volunteers from Adiuva, an NGO in Chennai. The volunteers were mostly high school children from classes XI and XII who enthusiastically participated and spent the day with the special children at Bala Vihar, Kilpauk. Bala Vihar is a home for orphans and mentally retarded persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy and Down Syndrome.
The volunteers donated note books, pens, crayons, pencil boxes, colouring kits and other school-utility items. They had loads of fun filled activities planned for these special children. The special children showcased their artistic talent by displaying their drawing prowess.The volunteers too were more than happy to assist the children in all their activities. They had fun with collage. The little fingers did wonders on paper while using the ladies fingers for colouring. Simple games using stickers and cartoon characters entertained the special kids.
Some of the volunteers had their eyes wet seeing how unkind nature had been with these kids. The children later entertained the audience with their vocal chords.
When questioned about how different the day was to them, S.Shruthi, one of the volunteeers said, “It was a new experience to share the world of special children. We were moved by their talents. It dawned upon us that when we could spend hours in malls and gaming centres, why not spend some quality time with these special kids. We look forward to more such social activities”.
The volunteers said that they had a sense of satisfaction and felt that the day had been meaningful.