Yakap: Embracing Our Differences

Ten years ago, Dolores Cheng formed The Center for Possibilities Foundation (CFP).  “It was my own coming to terms with the condition of my son,” she shares. Andreas, now 22, was diagnosed with Global Developmental Delay when he was 3 years old.  “There were no support groups for his particular type of disability, I didn’t know where to go, who to see, where to find what I needed to know. I wanted to understand what it meant to raise a child with special needs. So I thought that maybe if I formed a group of my own, I would be able to ring a call to other people who might be in the same boat and need some help,” Dolores continues.

Dolores F. Cheng

The vision and mission of CFP revolves around inclusion, having a compassionate society that includes persons with special needs into the mainstream population. Even the way CFP is set up reflects this vision of inclusion. “We come from different backgrounds, different types of families and family lives, it represents how the world is,” Dolores points out. 

The CFP board is composed of finance expert Renato Reyes, educators Cynthia and Lito Gonzalez; restaurateurs, car enthusiasts, and civic leaders, Vangie and Dieter Jaehn; mommy blogger Michelle Ressa Aventajado, jeweller Geeta Chulani,  producer Yvonne de Paula, co-parent of a special child Totoy Garcia, publisher Maricris Lim Pineda, accomplished netizen Mark Ignacio, and spiritual adviser Fr. Gerard Deveza.

Dieter Jaehn

Angelito Gonzalez

Evangeline Jaehn

Jeetu Chulani

Gilberto Garcia

Maricar Diokno

Maricris Pineda

Martha Cynthia Gonzalez

Michelle Aventajado

Renato Reyes

Yvonne De Paula

For the past decade, CFP has engaged in teaching skills and promoting inclusion in underserved sectors through support groups, literature, film showing, and orientation. They’ve published books regarding persons with special needs and organized events such as special football tournaments that allow the athletic inclinations of the kids to shine.

Their biggest project to date is “Yakap”.  Produced by Dolores and directed by Danny Añonuevo, the film provides a glimpse into a day in the lives of three people: Evangeline “Gelli” Aventajado, a 4-year-old with Down Syndrome; Aaron Joshua “AJ” De Quiroz, an 8-year-old with epilepsy, Autism, and Global Developmental Delay; and Kevin Avelino, a 45-year-old with Global Developmental Delay. “The stories are told from the points of view of their parents. Nothing was scripted, everything that you will see is natural and unplanned,” describes Dolores.

“More than a film, we are presenting profiles of true courage. Courage of the children whose disabilities are the only reality they have ever known, and who live their lives the only way they know how, in spite of curious stares, pointing fingers, and hidden smiles. And the courage of parents and family members who may have grown up thinking normal was everything but ended up learning that different can be the new normal”.

Music for “Yakap” was composed by Jessie Lasaten  and the post production color grading was done by Issa Gonzalez. The 54-minute film is capped off by a music video with lyrics that Dolores wrote with music by Charo Unite.

 “Yakap means to embrace.  In line with CFP’s  vision, we wish for all children with disability to be embraced into the mainstream of our lives and to be treated the way we treat each other -- with compassion, respect, dignity and acceptance,” says Dolores. 

CFP hopes to bring the film to different places and generate more awareness for the need to respect the potential and promise of persons with special needs. “We would be very happy to do special screenings. We can visit schools and would be more than willing to tie up with community organizations,” she volunteers.

The group is also on a quest to build and operate Special Education (SPED) Centers for indigent communities, for children with special needs who are undiagnosed and untreated. Their Sagada SPED Center is now open. The  Norzagaray, Bulacan SPED Center is expected to start running later this year. And the Tacloban and Sorsogon SPED Centers are scheduled to operate sometime in 2017.  

The Centers are brick and mortar structures with tables, surrounded with stimulating materials, equipment, and learning tools that can be used to teach children the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic. Each SPED Center will be operated by a teacher trained in the SPED division of Reach International School.

“In many parts of the country, especially in remote areas, there is no government center dedicated to the identification, recognition, much less support and treatment for persons with special needs. Many special children are physically mature but have cognitive and behavioral challenges so it is imperative that we create centers of learning that can teach them some skills with which they can live with some form of independence and dignity,” elaborates Dolores. Enrolment in the SPED Center is free so it helps alleviate the cost of taking care of special children from the families. These centers will also include parent support groups.

Special screenings of “Yakap” may be arranged through CFP at centerforpossibilities.asia or (02) 723-1242 / (0918) 888-1759.

“Yakap” is supported by Rustan’s  Commercial  Corporation, Gruppo Mobili Philippines, Inc., AY Foundation, Inc., Royal Duty Free Subic, Marks & Spencer, Mamou Restaurant, Ralph’s Wines & Spirits, Rustan Marketing Corporation, Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines  Inc., Leslie Corporation – Clover Chips, Miladay, Orogem, The Phinma Foundation, Inner Peace Foundation Inc. Manila, Music Master (Music School & Recording Arts), nananadal Public Relations & Events Management,  Philippine Daily Inquirer, The Philippine Star, Crossover 105.1 FM, and Retro DCG –FM – 105.9.

Down Syndrome  also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all, or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is typically associated with physical growth delays, characteristic facial features, and mild to moderate intellectual disability.

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction, verbal and non-verbal communication, and restricted and repetitive behavior.

Global Developmental Delay is an umbrella term used when children are significantly delayed in their cognitive and physical development. There is usually a more specific condition which causes this delay, such as Fragile X syndrome or other chromosomal abnormalities.

Interview with Dolores Cheng, founder of The Center for Possibilities Foundation

What is “Yakap”?
The film “Yakap” shows a day in the lives of three people: Evangeline “Gelli” Aventajado, a 4-year-old with Down Syndrome; Aaron Joshua “AJ” De Quiroz, an 8-year-old with epilepsy, Autism, and Global Developmental Delay; and Kevin Avelino, a 45-year-old with Global Developmental Delay.

The stories are told from the points of view of their parents. We did  not have a script for the film, everything that you will see is natural and unplanned.

More than a film, we are presenting profiles of true courage. First, courage of the children whose disabilities are the only reality they have ever known and who live their lives the only way they know how, in spite of curious stares, pointing fingers, and hidden smiles. Second, the courage of parents and family members who may have grown up thinking normal was everything but ended up learning that different can be the new normal.

Who are the people behind the film?

I produced the film on behalf of The Center for Possibilities (CFP) Foundation. Danny Añonuevo directed it while Jessie Lasaten composed the music. The post production color grading was done by Issa Gonzalez.

How long is the film?
The film runs for a total of 56 minutes. The film proper is around 54 minutes and it is capped off by a music video with lyrics that I wrote and music by Charo Unite.

Why is the film entitled “Yakap”?

The vision and mission of The Center for Possibilities Foundation revolves around inclusion, having a compassionate society that includes persons with special needs into the mainstream population. How best to include them than in an embrace? CFP envisions a society wherein embracing our differences becomes normal, a society that embraces  (yakap in Filipino) every individual into the larger community of man, regardless of ability.

What lessons will the viewers learn from watching “Yakap”?
Disability recognizes no boundaries. It can happen to anyone regardless of their class, religion, and gender.

Parents are an important pillar and component of each special person’s journey because they are the backbone of their lives.  At the end of the day, the parents are the ones who will have to take care of the children through their lifetime. The children cannot exist without the parents. And that’s the fear of every parent, who will take care of my child when I’m gone?

There is hope. Kevin is a teacher’s assistant in a Marikina special school; AJ is a scholar of a special school in Muntinlupa and now has two siblings who are typical children being taught by their parents to look after their kuya. Gelli is a very happy and lovely child and the parents have taken her continued happiness as their constant objective.

Why did you come up with the film?

I have always been exposed to media and film. I believe that film is a very compelling medium that allows individual stories to be told. Through “Yakap”, we are telling stories which need to be heard, stories for people who are different, people who do not get much attention and publicity.

How long did the film take to produce?

The film took more than three years to produce due to lack of funds, production had to be paused from time to time.

What were the challenges in producing the film?

Aside from the financial challenges, I also had a hard time finding people willing to share their stories. A lot of families are reticent in telling their stories due to extreme privacy issues and the stigma surrounding disabilities. A lot of special families are painfully private, partly because of the feeling that there’s something not quite right about having a child with special needs.

What do you hope to achieve through the film?

We hope to generate awareness about the need to respect the potential and promise of persons with special needs. We want to promote inclusion and we just want to make everybody part of our world. As Scott Hamilton said, “the worst disability is a bad attitude”.  

It is really important to us to be able to bring this film to as many people as possible. We are hoping that people will request for special screenings. We are open to that, we can bring it to the schools, all over the country, we are prepared to do that. Through this, we hope to cultivate compassion and acceptance.

We wish to solicit support to build and operate Special Education (SPED) Centers for indigent and underserved communities, for children with special needs who are undiagnosed and untreated. Our Sagada SPED Center is now open. We are looking forward to having the  Norzagaray, Bulacan SPED Center running later this year. The Tacloban and Sorsogon SPED Centers are scheduled to operate sometime in 2017.  We would like to set up more SPED centers in the remote areas because that’s where a lot of the people need it more.

Another is to encourage government to put into place systems and infrastructure that can support persons with special needs.

Please tell us more about the SPED Centers.

The Centers are brick and mortar structures with tables, surrounded with stimulating materials, equipment, and learning tools that can be used to teach children the basics of reading, writing, and arithmetic. Each SPED Center will be operated by a teacher trained in the SPED division of Reach International School.

Why is there a need for these SPED Centers?

In many parts of the country, especially in remote areas, there is no government center dedicated to the identification, recognition, much less support and treatment for persons with special needs. Many special children are physically mature but have cognitive and behavioral challenges so it is imperative that we create centers of learning that can teach them some skills with which they can live with some form of independence and dignity.

How do the SPED Centers help the communities?
Enrolment in the SPED Center is free so it helps alleviate the cost of taking care of special children from the families. These centers will also include parent support groups.

How can the public watch “Yakap”?

We would be very happy to do special screenings.  Interested parties can arrange the screenings through CFP. We can visit schools and would be more than willing to tie up with community organizations.

When was Center for Possibilities Foundation established?

It was established in 2006.

Why was the Center for Possibilities Foundation established?

It was part of my personal journey. My son Andreas (now 22 years old) was diagnosed at age three with Global Development Delay. At the time, I wanted to understand what it meant to raise a child with special needs. There were no support groups for his particular type of disability, I didn’t know where to go, who to see, where to find what I needed to know. Everyone I knew hid it or did not address the elephant in the room, they never recognized my son and his disability for what it was. So I thought that maybe if I formed a group of my own, I would be able to ring a call to other people who might be in the same boat and need some help. I wanted to provide a support system to parents.

Who are the members of The Center for Possibilities Foundation (CFP)?

The way CFP is set up reflects our vision of inclusion. We come from different backgrounds, different types of families and family lives because it represents how the world is. That’s the way we want it to be. 

The CFP board is composed of finance expert Renato Reyes, educators Cynthia and Lito Gonzalez; restaurateurs, car enthusiasts, and civic leaders, Vangie and Dieter Jaehn; mommy blogger Michelle Ressa Aventajado, jeweller Geeta Chulani,  producer Yvonne de Paula; co-parent of a special child, Totoy Garcia, publisher Maricris Lim Pineda, accomplished netizen Mark Ignacio, and our spiritual adviser Fr. Gerard Deveza.

What are the projects of The Center for Possibilities Foundation (CFP)?

Right now we are focused on the SPED Centers. All these SPED Centers provide services for free so we have to generate funding for them. Through the years, CFP has engaged in teaching skills and promoting inclusion with the underserved sectors through support groups, literature, film showing, and orientation. We’ve published books regarding persons with special needs (There’s Something You Should Know About Me) and we’ve organized events such as special football tournaments that allow the athletic inclinations of these kids to shine.

How can they get in touch with The Center for Possibilities Foundation (CFP)?

They can reach us through our website, centerforpossibilities.asia or call us at (02) 723-1242 or (0918) 888-1759.

Who are the patrons and benefactors that you would like to acknowledge?

Rustan’s  Commercial  Corporation, Gruppo Mobili Philippines, Inc., AY Foundation, Inc., Royal Duty Free Subic, Marks & Spencer, Mamou Restaurant, Ralph’s Wines & Spirits, Rustan Marketing Corporation, Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines  Inc., Leslie Corporation – Clover Chips, Miladay, Orogem, The Phinma Foundation, Inner Peace Foundation Inc. Manila, Music Master (Music School & Recording Arts), nananadal Public Relations & Events Management,  Philippine Daily Inquirer, The Philippine Star, Crossover 105.1 FM, and Retro DCG –FM – 105.9.

Definition of terms (lifted from Wikipedia)