Plett local campaigns for town to be accessible to differently-abled
Rita Hardaker has been working behind the scenes for a number of years in Plett, campaigning for public spaces and tourism establishments to upgrade in order to accommodate the differently-abled.
Bitou municipality has responded well and the town planning department has already made inroads into extending wheelchair access on some of Plett’s streets. Many of Plett’s tourism establishments are geared for the differently-abled, but the mammoth project is on-going to create awareness and affect all the necessary changes.
Plett Tourism fully supports this drive. Plett citizens once again are at the forefront of making a difference to the Plett environment.
Eden’s “Day 4 Disability” in Plett
It was with great pride that Plettenberg Bay Bowling Club in the Eden District held a ‘Day 4 Disability’ on Saturday, November 30th.
The purpose was to raise awareness of lawn bowls as a social sport for all and to show-case the participation of differently-abled bowlers skillfully engaging in a leisure activity alongside the able-bodied on equal terms. 48 bowlers from near and far took part including two Springbok players and 8 people with physical challenges.
During the morning session, a game of 3 sets of skills-based play to mimic what it is like to bowl as a disabled player took place. During the first set, players wore an eye patch over one eye to distort depth perception. During the second set, players delivered their bowls whilst seated on a crate to mimic bowling from a wheelchair. During the third set, the players had to put their non-bowling arm behind their back to deliver the bowl, this is to show the balance required playing only with one arm.
Each player had a personal scorecard to cover all three tasks. After a sponsored lunch the regular tabs in-game started for all players. During the month of November, three of the members had sold tickets for a 50/50 draw and R24 000 was raised which will be put towards improving the club’s accessibility for differently-abled players and older players with less mobility.
It was a highly successful and happy day and the major aim of awareness was achieved. At the prize-giving function, the awards for the day were handed to the winners best at each set and best overall performer.
The Day 4 Disability event was the brainchild of the Plettenberg Bay BC and when put to the Executive Committee for Eden Bowls it was decided that an event like the one held in Plettenberg Bay would become a fixture on the Eden bowling calendar.
Clubs in the District will be encouraged to hold a fundraising/awareness event during the first week in December, to honour the SA National Disability Awareness Month, taking place during November as well as the United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities, taking place on the 3rd of December. This has created further excitement.