People with autism after high school are forgotten by the system. That's why Mikica Petronijević, the father of a young man with autism, is building a center in Arandjelovac to enrich their lives and provide respite for their parents.
One of the biggest problems parents of people with autism is a question - what after school because for them there are almost no contents that they could deal with. Day care centers are full, waiting lists are huge, and parents are exhausted, both financially and because of a lifelong struggle with the system.
"Mihajlo finished elementary school on Juzni Boulevard and there is still nothing for him. They don't get better after finishing school, they don't move, they don't disappear, and the state doesn't offer any facilities for them," Mikica Petronijević, the father of a young man with autism and the founder of the humanitarian organization "Scrolls in the Dark", told Vreme.
He founded this humanitarian organization with the desire to turn his ancestral home in the village of Venčane near Arandjelovac into a day and multi-day stay center for children and people with autism.
"We are trying to create a legal team that will be able to understand and give correct answers to a million parental questions. And just some of them that you ask yourself when you have a child with autism are: who to turn to, what to do next, how to enroll him in school, how to direct him, what is autism and others," says Petronijević.
He adds that everything that happens - happens mainly on the initiative of the parents. "It should be clear what happens to the child when he receives a diagnosis and which institutions can provide quality support."
Corona period trigger
People with autism need to enrich their day like any other person. "We are in a problem when we don't have activities. Corona has shown us what it means when the day is not fulfilled - a person becomes lonely, and so do they," our interlocutor points out.
"First, citizens were allowed to walk their pets and go outside, and then children and people with developmental disabilities. Well, in that sentence, it is sublimated how much society thinks and cares about people with developmental disabilities," emphasizes Petronijević.
He adds that it was then that he started arranging the estate in Arandjelovac.
"First, we created a summer scene where we have theater performances where everyone can come. We have a humanitarian caravan, for example, where we play a theater show around Serbia, as well as promote books and exhibitions, so we collect funds for the association's work. More importantly, we also talk about the topic of autism, in order to break stereotypes and some prejudices and bring them closer, not with pity and pathos, but with a simple healthy approach - we want to show that they are there, next to us", explains the interviewee "Time".
He goes on to say that the idea is to enrich the lives of children and people with autism in the center with different activities.
"We want to give them freedom of choice in choosing food and in choosing activities, so that they can choose what they want. And then through that we educate them in mastering daily routines, which is also a serious problem - from going to the toilet, dressing, eating independently, and so on. So, let's work on that, to make it easier for them and their families."
For example, he explains, when it comes to choosing food, the idea is to create a food board so that those who are non-verbal can point to what they are eating.
Autism is not a disease
Petronijević points out that autism is a state of consciousness and that it is not curable, and that we should make an effort to understand these people in the right way.
"I realized that my Mihailo likes music, he likes to swim, he likes to travel, we go for car rides, and that I should afford him these things to make the child smile, and that's the best thing that I, as a parent, can do to make him smile and be happy," he says.
And he adds that in the center they are building, they want to approach people with autism from the perspective of what they can do, because they are constantly told what they can't do. "We want to show what they can do."
Free treatments
The interlocutor of "Vremena" emphasizes that special education specialists, speech therapists, nurses, and educators will be employed in the center. "We also have volunteers from FASPER. The idea is to carry out activities with them in the center to improve their psychophysical abilities, daily routines, but also to enjoy themselves, to make them feel good."
One of his friends who now lives in Denmark said that's how they do it there. "It was great that I was able to use that good system on the trail of some personal experience," says Petronijević.
He notes that everything is free in the center - from food to the professional team. "Parents who have funds can donate to the work of the association, but we have no intention of charging for accommodation or activities. Our most sincere wish is for them to have a good time in the center", concludes Mikica Petronijević.
Donations for the work of the association can be paid to:
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