HELP FOR CRIPPLED CHILDREN

Evening Post, Volume CXVI, Issue 112, 8 November 1933, Page 16

HELP FOR CRIPPLED CHILDREN

The part Rotary could play in the cafe of Jhe crippled children of the Dominion was explained to members of the Timaru Rotary Club recently by District Governor T. C. List, states the ''Timaru Herald." ' It was realised, said Rotarian List, that the hospital took care' of the physical disabilities of such children, and the system was an excellent one, but very little was done on the other side to "big-brother" these unfortunate children and make them useful members .of the community. With such an object in view a committee, of .which he was a.member, had been formed, and if intended to make a survey of the Dominion and endeavour to ascertain in what manner Rotary could interest itself in the question/ In America, he had been greatly impressed by the activities of various children's committees and the interest taken in the work by Rotarians. In some of the big manufacturing centres a Rotarian would take under his wing one of the crippled children of the locality and endeavour to find him a place in one of the industries of which the Rotarian was part, and the result had been very satisfactory. Special education and special work had so well equipped the assisted children that it had been pointed-out to the speaker that when times became hard in certain industries and men had to be dispensed with, the cripples were the last to go. Better service and not. senti-ment-had been the reason. In the opinion of Rotarian List a great injustice was being done in New Zealand so far as crippled children were concerned. There were now at least 5000 of them in the Dominion and these figures were being added to at the rate of 500 a year. The special committee would submit a scheme to the various clubs and ask members to do what they could to find work for the children and give any assistance within their power.