Family fun in the sun
SSAFA Forces Help is the national charity helping serving and ex-Service men, women and their families in need. SSAFA Forces Help run two holidays a year for the disabled children of military personnel, like Samuel Parvin, who’s dad Phillip is in the Navy. Samuel, a lively 10 year old, went on a SSAFA Forces Help Special Needs Holiday in Devon last summer.
Mum Helen explained that he was a bundle of nerves when he first arrived, but by the end of the holiday, he’d had a whale of a time and didn’t want to leave. Samuel has Asperger’s Syndrome, a condition that makes it hard for him to read social situations and respond to others.
Although Samuel looks like a normal 10 year old, it’s difficult for him to explain what he wants. From time to time it makes him hyperactive and restless and his behaviour can make him appear rude. In fact he is just struggling to understand and respond to the environment around him.
Spending time with other children gives Samuel a chance to understand his own condition, and the holiday breaks his routine, which is a healthy challenge for him. His confidence has received a great boost and group activities also taught him how to get along with others.
Samuel’s sister Charlotte has been away on the SSAFA Forces Help Siblings Holiday, designed especially for children who have a brother or sister with special needs. Helen Says “She’s made some terrific friends who she can share her experiences with, children who know what its like to have a brother who’s different and can support each other when things are difficult”
Your support for Action Not Disability enables us to care for families like the Parvin's and means we will always be there for those to whom we all owe so much.