welcome, support and entertain young people with disabilities
The organization is at the origin of two reception centers in the 04 and a day center in Monaco.
This month, the article in our new series dedicated to associations in the Principality and the Côte d’Azur, focuses on Monaco Disease Power, created in 2007.
A haven of peace, in the heart of Monte-Carlo. In this small house, the Monaco Disease Power association has been welcoming young people with disabilities for fifteen years, thus taking over from specialized and medical institutes.
These young people are like everyone else. They want to see friends, do activities…
Muriel Natali-Laure, President of Monaco Disease Power
At the origin of this project: Muriel Natali-Laure, herself the mother of a young girl with a disability. During her daughter’s childhood, she realized that there was no support to help families when the specialized institutes were closed, that is to say on Wednesday afternoons, Saturdays and during school holidays: the usual summer camps open their doors to handicapped children, but some handicaps can reach special equipment, and they only accept children up to twelve years old. »
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Neither a specialized center nor a nursery, Monaco Disease Power offers its Riviera members (now aged between three and thirty) a whole host of activities: hikes, outings to the swimming pool, beach, museum visits, excursions, cinema, mini- golf, yoga, painting workshops, cooking workshops, sailing courses (in partnership with the Yacht Club of Monaco), learning everyday gestures, or even donkey rides.
Inclusion and socialization
” These young people are like everyone elsesays Muriel. They want to see friends, do activities…” The objective is therefore to enable its members with mental disabilities and/or autism to work on inclusion and socialization. Teach them to gain autonomy, while taking their disability into account.
And it works! Gil, 25, suffers from mental retardation. Alongside Nour Eddine, who takes care of him at the center, he reveals his favorite activities. Eat, of course, and preferably pizza! But the young man, very smiling, also likes puzzles, the beach, cycling, horse riding or yoga.
For parents, the place is also a daily relief. Witness Amel, mother of Djilalli, a 27-year-old autistic young man, who has not yet found a place in an adult institute. ” He likes coming here, and that’s already a lot because when he doesn’t like it, he doesn’t want to. But here, he is very happy! He loves meal workshops and redoes recipes at home. I thank the association for being there. It is a real help during the school holidays: supervising our young people at home can be a bit complicated, especially when we are working. Monaco Disease Power has paid a lot for our children. »
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Young people with autism also represent nearly 90% of members. Thus, the association collaborates with Professor Catherine Barthélémy, child psychiatrist and professor of medicine emeritus at the University Hospital of Tours, who has made autism her specialty. ” It is the reference in France, but also internationally adds Muriel.
The president of the association also provided herself with a solid team, to ensure the reception of young people in the best conditions. Doctor Cinzia Pierraccini, a neuropsychiatrist in Montelupo (in Tuscany), regularly visits the association to bring her perspective and her advice to the accompanying persons who work on site and who allow each young person individual support.
Dealing with the lack of places
This long-term work, which ensures the regular follow-up of 25 young people, at a rate of a dozen a day, can be carried out in particular thanks to the numerous aids received by the association. In addition to an annual subsidy paid by the Prince’s Government, Monaco Disease Power can count on the support of numerous organisations, such as the Monegasque Red Cross, the Cuomo Foundation, the Salus Charity Foundation, the Sancta Devota Foundation and the Boustany Foundation.
Enough to financially support the association, which best helps families while waiting for a place to become available in a specialized institute. In France, the “Creton” amendment of January 13, 1989 allows the maintenance of young adults accommodated in establishments and services for children with disabilities, while waiting to find a place in an adult home. Previously, they must leave the establishment at the age of twenty.
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In fact, places with adapted structures remain too few in the face of demand. The Departmental House for Disabled People in the Alpes-Maritimes now lists some fifty structures for adults with disabilities throughout the department. But the geographical distance, the limited number of places and the capacity to accommodate different disabilities can quickly become a brake for families.
Muriel Natali-Laure also has a project about to materialize: to build a third house in Annot, in the 04, capable of welcoming, within inclusive housing, young people with autistic disorders and their companions, in the same way as the Maison d’Amélie and the Maison des Copains. In principle, this new establishment should see the light of day soon, with the start of work planned for 2023.
To support Monaco Disease Power and its projects, you can make a donation, by completing the online form. But for Muriel Natali-Laure, the best is still to move directly, to meet the members of the association and discover its actions.