LONDON, ONT. -- Twelve-year-old Ahmad Khan and his 21-year-old brother AbdAllah received a Dream Presentation on Tuesday from The Sunshine Foundation of Canada.
The brothers live with different severities of cerebral palsy, and the dream they requested was technology based - allowing them to better connect with friends and family during the pandemic, which has kept them isolated at home since March.
“There’s things like laptops and iPads, and various things to help them connect with their friends, with the community, but then also to aid, they wanted certain software to aid in their schooling,” explains Nancy Sutherland from The Sunshine Foundation.
AbdAllah requires support for every aspect of his daily life and communicates using eye gazes, sounds and gestures.
He requested a laptop and iPad, as these are familiar technologies he uses at school. His mother Huma says this will help him reconnect with peers.
“That was in the beginning, it was very difficult, it’s still difficult. Now he will have the ability to connect with his friends as a group chat, and maybe video chat. That I think is more practical. If you are not feeling somebody’s presence at least you can see them and talk to them and you know who you are talking to.”
Younger brother Ahmad had several surgeries to improve his mobility last year, limiting his ability to play outside with his friends. Technology has become an important tool to maintain his social life.
The parade included members of the Sunshine Foundation, as well as neighbours, the London fire department and London Mayor Ed Holder.
