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10 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday January 2, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com ErinoakKids' ILP helps youths tackle life By Pat Atkinson SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER With the holidays wrapping up and second semester getting under way at school, a university student's thoughts turn to packing, transportation, course schedules and other logistics associated with campus life. For the average student, these arrangements can be daunting. For students with special needs, they can be overwhelming, yet, with ample preparation, training, and assistance, motivated individuals can capably attend university, and even live on campus. This is the hopeful message that Aziz Memon, 19, and Bob McKay, 21, preached to those fortunate enough to be mentored by them through the Independent Living Program (ILP) offered by ErinoakKids Centre for Treatment and Development and Sheridan College. ErinoakKids treats youths up to age 19 who have physical or developmental challenges. After graduating from its ILP themselves at age 17, both Memon and McKay proceeded to become living examples of their own advice, then returned to ILP as goal support workers to help others become self-reliant. "Whether your disability is physical or developmental, if you set your mind to something you can do it," said Memon, a second-year Brock University student who is studying to become an accountant and will co-op at a bank or a firm of chartered accountants, despite his reliance on a power wheelchair. Either way, he's up for the challenge, but his future wasn't always so bright. Diagnosed at age 10 with muscular dystrophy, Memon and his family lived in Pakistan, where services for people with disabilities were hard to find and even harder to access. Upon learning of his son's disability, his father applied for permission for the family to immigrate to Canada. Three years later, Memon was in this country receiving assistance in the HaltonPeel area. "A week after we became landed immigrants, my Dad obtained our health cards and I was on the doorstep of ErinoakKids," he remembers. "ErinoakKids provided me with physiotherapy, occupational therapy, access to a neuromuscular clinic, and support to help me transition into my university routine." Today, Memon uses his newly-acquired accounting and management skills to create spreadsheets and transition plans for the organization that helped him break free from what he once perceived as limitations. Equally grateful, McKay, a fourth-year York University student, can't remember a time when he wasn't receiving help from ErinoakKids. McKay was diagnosed at birth with Freeman-Sheldon Syndrome, a rare and little-understood inherited disorder characterized by a range of physical abnormalities that result in restricted movement. Today he is specializing in criminology and considering a career in law after completing his undergraduate degree. From age 13, McKay was raised by his Aziz Memon dad, a single parent. The challenge of caring for a son with special needs, along with his other two sons, was no easy feat and one that McKay says might have been impossible if not for the ErinoakKids' `one-stop shopping' approach to case management. "The organization has helped me with everything from simple social skills to being able to successfully live on my own at university," he explains. It makes a great difference in the lives of the people it serves. That's why, even though I'm no longer a client, I love to help out there whenever I can." Were it not for the ILP, his father might not have been comfortable with his plan to attend university. "Dad saw that I could direct my care and be happy and healthy on my own," he said, "and that it was what I really wanted to do." Today, McKay's father is delighted with his son's independence. For his part, McKay is even happier that his father is finally getting his life back. "In the past, my father wouldn't leave me alone to go to the store," he said, noting his dad recently visited Europe. McKay is also going somewhere new. After 21 years of preparation, he is moving off campus to his own newly-constructed apartment in downtown Toronto ­ ready and able to live on his own and enjoy the hard-won satisfaction of personal freedom. ErinoakKids is the province's largest not-for-profit, fully-accredited children's treatment centre that offers treatment, rehabilitation and support services to children with physical, developmental or communication disabilities. It is funded by the Ontario government, but some of its programs fall outside that funding, and must be supported by donors ­ in the case of the ILP, funding comes from the Milton, Ontario chapter of the Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.), enthusiasts of the famous motorcycle, who put on a `charity run' each year to raise money for ErinoakKids. Formerly known as, Erinoak Serving Young People with Physical Disabilities, the organization grew exponentially from serving 1,000 families to more than 8,000 families over the past 10 years, an average growth rate of nearly 10 per cent annually. In June, 2007, its name became ErinoakKids Centre for Treatment and Development. HOME OF THE SELF-CLEANING HOT TUB BOXING WEEK NO TAX EVENT HWY. 403 UP SAVE 000 TO $3 OT ON H S TUB M !! SYSTE SALT E $500 SAV O FITS, TR ON RE EARENCE 7 CL LS, 200 MODE 2528 Bristol Circle Mississauga Winston Churchill/Dundas DOVER GATE BRISTOL CIRCLE Q.E.W. (905) 829-4991 WINSTON CHURCHILL BLVD. DUNDAS ROAD HAMPSHIRE GATE Oakville Mon. Tues. Wed. Thurs. Fri. Sat. Sun. 10­6PM Closed Closed 10­8PM 10-6PM 10-5PM 12-5PM DON'T PAY FOR 1 YEAR Formally California Spa & Fitness www.theselfcleaninghottub.com