Chooks-To-Go of Bounty Agro Ventures Inc. (BAVI) and Special Olympics Asia Pacific announced on Tuesday its partnership to strengthen sports awareness for people with intellectual disabilities (PIDs).
Dubbed as “Kaya ‘Yan, Manok ng Bayan”, the campaign aims to provide more sports platform for PIDs across the country by conducting sports festivals, training and coaching sessions.
“Filipinos with intellectual disabilities have inherent dignity and abilities that must be recognized. Through the involvement in sports, we will be able to help PIDs to excel in them and gain life skills and self-confidence in the process,” said Chooks-To-Go President Ronald Mascariñas.
“This partnership is important because we live in a society where people with intellectual disabilities are always classed. They deserve the right to play in the same playing field and deserve all the support they could get,” added Special Olympics’ Kaye Samson, who represented the organization’s president Dipak Natali.
Special Olympics Asia Pacific has already helped more than 6,000 PIDs in the country through sports.
Through this partnership, they expect to reach out more and even to far-flung areas by conducting sports clinics like basketball.
Apart from sports, the partnership is also expected to promote nationwide recruitment of PIDs to BAVI’s offices.
Among those who have benefitted in the partnership was 21-year-old Henry Munarriz, who has autism.
“I’m grateful to be part of Bountry’s workforce,” said Munarriz, who was assigned in one of Bounty’s offices in the Human Resources Department last December.
“I’m excited about the work culture and show people that I can do whatever a normal person can do.”
Founded in 1968, Special Olympics is a global inclusion movement using sport, health, education and leadership programs.
There are 1.9 million athletes across 35 countries in the Asia Pacific region alone.
