Latest / Sarah Knows Support Workers / Keeley’s Cause: From School Exclusion to 691 iPads for Kids With Autism

Transcript

Keeley’s Cause: From School Exclusion to 691 iPads for Kids With Autism · Sarah Knows Support Workers

0:00
Hi, everyone. It's Sarah.
0:01
No support workers. And today, we're going to talk
0:03
about something that's really interesting and intriguing and
0:06
there's a lot in the sector happening.
0:08
And I'm so glad to have you, Sharon.
0:10
Oh, thank you. Thanks Sarah for having me all.
0:12
Right now we're going to get down to the nitty gritties
0:14
because I am nosy as hell. You're ready.
0:16
Yeah, go for it. All right, so.
0:18
Ask away. Achilles calls.
0:20
Achilles calls? Did that start from school?
0:22
So yes, Kelly struggled in primary school.
0:26
It started around probably grade three, grade 4.
0:29
So Kelly was struggling. I noticed that things weren't
0:34
above board. Like Kelly at that time was
0:36
diagnosed with Asperger's and so had her brother before.
0:40
But the difference between the two of them was really prominent
0:44
for Keely and I knew she was struggling.
0:46
So I approached the school and asked them could we get a
0:49
cognitive report? And they told me that Keely
0:52
wouldn't meet the criteria for funding just to tap into one of
0:55
the aides in the room. So we did that.
0:57
Then grade 4 come and she was still struggling.
1:00
She didn't know timetables and everything, and they were
1:03
putting her up to grade 5. So I had a really big issue with
1:06
that because why are you putting my child up to grade 5 if she
1:11
can't do her times tables? Because she's only got another
1:14
two years before she gets to high school.
1:16
And if she doesn't know them, she's really, really going to
1:18
struggle. So while they weren't happy
1:20
about keeping her down, we kept her down.
1:22
I encouraged them to, you know, do times tables and everything
1:26
with her, but no. So grade 6, they signed Kelly
1:29
off, Grade 6, Year 7, ready. But prior to that, the doctors
1:32
had said that Kelly needed technology to support her.
1:36
And the school decided that they would overrule that because what
1:40
would the other parents say if Keeley had an iPad and their
1:43
kids didn't? And I said that's like saying to
1:46
the blind boy that he couldn't, can't bring in his guide dog
1:49
because others will want a puppy.
1:51
Like, it's just it's ridiculous. Yeah.
1:53
If you've got a child, no matter who they are, if they need extra
1:57
supports that help them along the way, then then that's what
2:01
they should get, right? Even if it was only because they
2:04
had iPads there. So even if it was only a couple
2:06
of hours or whatever. So then grade 6 come, they
2:09
signed off, Grade 6, year 7 ready.
2:12
And then we decided to home school Killy because Killy was
2:16
being bullied at school by teachers and by students, and
2:20
there was only one bus out to Ballarat and a number of those
2:24
bullies were on that bus. So you're talking 30-40 minutes
2:28
away. If something went wrong then
2:30
that's a long way to go and get to her before she's in a state.
2:34
And we've been through this with my son in Year 7.
2:37
He was getting engraving pens in his back and being bullied that
2:41
way and he was only 15 minutes away.
2:43
So this was a big concern. So we went into foots grade to
2:48
the psychology school there that did the reports.
2:51
We saw them for five visits and then we got Kili's cause report
2:54
back. So came back saying that Keely
2:57
had an IQ of 62, functioning at a grade 3-4 level, requiring a
3:02
full time aid and also a mild intellectual disability.
3:07
So while that was good in one way, it wasn't in another.
3:11
So Keely kind of went through a depression state where she
3:16
thought she was dumb because we explained that there was a mild
3:19
intellectual disability that impacted on her learning.
3:22
So we went through a couple of weeks, I think, of depression.
3:26
And then two weeks later, she was sitting in the back room
3:31
under the window and she just turned to me.
3:33
She was 13. And she said, you know what,
3:36
Mum, we have a right to an education as much as anyone
3:39
else. We have dreams too.
3:40
And I said, you know what, Kelly, you're absolutely right.
3:42
And she said, good, I want to start a charity.
3:45
I want to call it Kelly 'cause I want to design the logo.
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I want to find two kids that have what I have.
3:50
I want to raise money through sausage sizzles and I want to
3:53
buy them each an iPad. Keely still never had her own.
3:56
Then she said, And I want to go global.
3:58
So I said, well, let me get it off the ground first and
4:01
register it and see how we go. So we were with the lions at
4:06
that time. Well, I still am, but Keely was
4:08
a cub and we went to see them about, you know, how do we do a
4:12
sausage sizzle to raise money and they asked us what for.
4:16
So they decided that they would take Kili's cause on as a
4:19
project, which it still is today.
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So 2 sausage sizzles turned into 59.
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Kreswick Lions found out that Kili still didn't have her own
4:29
iPad and they sponsored hers. We are now 691 iPads.
4:34
So there's no government funding.
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We receive none. It's perceived that everyone
4:38
owns an iPad in the world, so there's no need to fund them.
4:43
But for kids with autism and intellectual disabilities and
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also the specialist schools who aren't funded unless you've got
4:50
an iPad, then your child's got nothing.
4:53
So Keely decided she was going to bridge the gap.
4:55
There's not another organization doing this on a full time basis.
4:59
And so she decided she was going to make it her mission to change
5:02
that. And that's how Keely's cause
5:04
became along. Wow, that's quite a big story
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and I hope you don't mind if I unpacked it a little bit more.
5:10
Go unpack it. Unpack it.
5:13
When she first came to you and said I want to do this, did it
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did it surprise you that she was quite an advocate in our sector?
5:20
Yes, because Keely was a select mutive.
5:23
Yeah. So Keely, as you saw before,
5:27
doesn't really get involved in talk.
5:29
She feels judged a lot because she was bullied for it.
5:32
So Keely used to always just pull off me, make me speak on
5:37
her behalf, yada yada yada. So when she came up with this
5:40
idea, I was kind of taken back. But then I wasn't because of the
5:45
way the kids are being brought up.
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I knew that there was some some fire in her, that she would
5:52
always find her place in this world somehow and we just didn't
5:56
know where or how. And they all do in one way or
5:59
another. They all find their way, and she
6:01
found her niche. Did you expect?
6:05
To blow up. Did I expect it to blow up?
6:07
Absolutely. Yeah.
6:08
I said yes. She said to me, will it work?
6:11
And I said, I don't know, Keely, but I'm going to back you 100%
6:15
going to give it a go. And if it works, it works.
6:17
And if it doesn't, it doesn't, we can at least say we gave it a
6:20
go and here we are. National charity.
6:23
She's won I think 1617 awards, three of them international.
6:30
I think it was two years ago she was put on the Victorian women's
6:33
honor roll as the youngest ever to go on it since 2001 and
6:39
there's only 735 people on it. So and then she won the Diana
6:43
Award in the UK and I think it's because she's doing something
6:48
that nobody else is doing. But it comes from lived
6:50
experience. It's as she said, she doesn't
6:53
want anyone to have to go through what she went through.
6:56
It was hell. So if she can bridge the gap and
6:58
prevent half of that, then she's she's made a difference.
7:02
Yeah, 100%. Was there any moment where you
7:06
guys were like, God, this is really hard, Maybe I just throw
7:09
in the towel. Yeah, I think it comes when
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you're trying to look in with for funding and partners and
7:14
sponsors and stuff like that. It's a lot of work because
7:17
because we can't get the funding in any way, we have to rely
7:21
heavily on the community, corporates, businesses.
7:25
So yeah, that was really hard. I think the break for me was
7:28
when we were able to get a sponsorship with Brighton Auto,
7:33
and that came with a car. And then that made me realize
7:36
that they're saying something that we see, and if they can see
7:41
it, then so can everyone else. And as we've grown and evolved,
7:45
the people that understand the autistic community are the ones
7:50
that come on to support. But also not just the community,
7:53
it's people that know someone. There's always someone in
7:56
business that knows someone. Oh, my friend's got autism or my
7:59
cousin's got autism, or, you know, so there's always someone
8:03
that knows somebody. So the more we share our story,
8:06
the more people see it, the more people support it.
8:09
What was the feeling like when you got to give the first iPad
8:13
to somebody? That was amazing.
8:15
Her name was Amy. We still see Amy every now and
8:19
again. Amy, I think she was about what
8:21
is she's 17 now and we've been going what, nine years?
8:26
So she would have been 8. And Amy was very much like Keely
8:30
struggled. She was like a mini Keely
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struggled with, you know, talking and everything.
8:35
She's now 17. She's I think she's passed her
8:39
year 12 already. She's doing amazing work and
8:42
going on to do some things that other kids might not normally
8:47
get. But for a child with autism and
8:50
a disability, that's that's a huge gig because that iPad is
8:55
what helped her to get there. Because the iPad holds the
8:59
teachers accountable, right? Every school has individual
9:02
learning plans for kids with disabilities.
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But depending on the school and depending on the teachers, it's
9:08
whether they get it or not. And there's a lot of teachers
9:11
doing amazing things out there. And if it wasn't for Keely's
9:14
Grade 2 teacher who brought to our attention that Keely
9:18
struggled with paper based work, she gets them all wrong, wrong
9:22
every answer. But if you put that same test on
9:25
a computer and ask her one by one, she gets them all right.
9:29
So she first brought that to our attention.
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So then when we saw Amy struggling, we knew that the
9:36
iPad would help her because it's not only about communicating and
9:41
education, it's also about regulating their meltdowns and
9:45
stuff like that. So to a child with autism or a
9:48
person with living with autism, that iPad technology is their
9:53
whole world in a way that they understand beyond us.
9:56
Because our world is unpredictable and their world is
10:00
literal. Their anxieties come from our
10:03
unpredictable world because it's ever changing.
10:06
I always say I'm like, I'm so glad I live in now compared to,
10:11
you know, a couple of 100 years ago because I really would not
10:13
have thrived as I do now because technology has come such a long
10:17
way. And that gives us me to do
10:20
things that we never would have thought was possible.
10:22
And you know, for anybody that is neurodivergent, you do get
10:27
stuck in a box. Yeah, absolutely.
10:29
You get, you put in that box, right, Whereas the iPad, because
10:33
it gives you a tailored education location to your
10:36
individual needs, then you get to thrive the way you need to
10:39
thrive. If you're just going to school,
10:41
you're, you're learning current talk curriculums, right, which
10:45
is great. But for people with autism and
10:47
for Keely, they can't do them because the steps now.
10:51
So when we went to school, adding up was 345 and 372 when
10:55
that was your figure. Now it's a seven step process,
10:58
right? So, you know, and, and the words
11:01
and the processing of the information, like Keely can read
11:04
a whole book from back to front, but she can't tell you what it's
11:07
about. So when she got her tailored
11:10
individual learning plan, that's when everything started to
11:14
change. That's when her confidence grew.
11:17
The charity has helped her. She thinks she's helping lots of
11:20
people, which she is, but she doesn't realize that that this
11:23
charity is actually helping her. So it's built her confidence.
11:27
It's helped her to speak better. She's doing things that she
11:30
would never do. Like we're working and part time
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and you know, now we're doing our course in education support
11:37
work. Yes, she's struggling, but we're
11:40
just helping her and guiding her through the best way we can.
11:42
And because at the end of it, despite all the, you know, the
11:46
work that you've got to do, that end product of her being an
11:49
education support worker is what she wants to do because she
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wants to give back to those that's helped her.
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Because, as she said, without their support, she wouldn't know
11:58
half of what she knows. Because when she went to the
12:01
specialist school, she was taught how to be an adult in a
12:04
real world, you know, how to bank, how to go travelling, all
12:07
those things that count that don't often happen.
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Her growth once she hit that specialist school was huge.
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She had no friends in mainstream school.
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She had so many in the specialist school that were just
12:19
like her that she still has today.
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So, so, yeah. So a lot of people say I don't
12:25
want my child going to specialist school.
12:27
You know, it demeans them because of the other children
12:30
that are around. But that's not the case because
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if you if you look a child with a disability, they automatically
12:38
flock to other kids with a disability.
12:40
So my son when he was younger, Yep, my son in in Kinder, he was
12:47
4. His best friend was a little
12:49
girl that had epilepsy. Now she was having nine to 10
12:53
seizures a day. And one day I went to pick him
12:55
up from Kinder and she'd had a seizure and he wasn't leaving.
12:59
And I said to him, we've got to go home.
13:00
He goes, I'm not going until Cherie wakes up.
13:04
So we waited and waited. And then she woke up.
13:07
And then his next friend was someone in a wheelchair.
13:10
And because they get each other because they understand each
13:13
other's struggles, whereas it's harder sometimes to make
13:17
friends. And Lee also had auto processing
13:20
disorder. So that kind of delayed the
13:23
conversation. So he was, you know, 2
13:25
conversations behind and then they go, oh, what are you
13:28
talking about? So that started a lot of
13:30
bullying as well. And they're saying for Keely,
13:33
because Keely was different and because the focus in school was
13:37
about what she wasn't doing, that allowed her to then be
13:41
bullied in the playground because, Oh my God, the teacher
13:43
said you're naughty and we can't play with naughty people.
13:46
And, and it just starts. And there's so many things that
13:50
need to be changed in the school setting.
13:52
I think teaching empathy and inclusion and discussing
13:56
different types of disability needs to be taught every week
13:59
because the whole world is filled with it.
14:02
It's not going to change. You guys are quite empathetic
14:05
towards people. They come from all walks of
14:07
life. Absolutely, absolutely
14:10
everybody. Everybody's got a right to be
14:11
here. And everybody has different ways
14:14
of learning, whether you've got a disability or whether you
14:16
don't. And I think we have to adapt to
14:18
that. You know, if we're adapting to
14:19
everything else, we need to adapt to those sorts of things.
14:23
Because as Keely said, everybody has a dream of being someone
14:27
someday too. So if you give everybody the
14:29
opportunity, then there's no reason and for everyone to say I
14:33
didn't get that because you were given it.
14:35
It's what you do with it. It's what you do with that
14:37
opportunity. So at the moment in the NDIS,
14:40
it's a little bit spicy and it's a little bit hard and difficult
14:45
and everything in between. And getting an iPad can be very
14:48
difficult and under people's plans to have so people can
14:54
communicate. What are some of the changes
14:56
families have told you since receiving an iPad for their
14:59
kids? The biggest change is for a non
15:02
verbal family, they get to hear their child's voice where
15:06
they've never heard it before in communication.
15:08
Because I've seen so many people walk up to people that are non
15:12
verbal and stand in front of them and go, hello, can you
15:16
understand me? Yeah, they can understand you.
15:19
They hear every word you say, right?
15:22
And a lot of parents. You up before you got there.
15:25
They probably are on automatically.
15:27
Got a chicken thinking this person is not something I want
15:30
to hang. Out with absolutely, absolutely.
15:32
And there are a lot of parents that think because their child's
15:35
non verbal and that they can't hear them speak that they don't
15:39
have the options that many have. But if you give that child that
15:43
is non verbal technology, the words that come out of their
15:47
mouth, the things they write blows you into next heaven.
15:52
So we took an iPad. We had to present three iPads at
15:55
the Children's Hospital one day. Two were coming from 2 hours
15:58
away and one was in the hospital.
16:01
So Keely presented the iPads and one of the boys was non verbal
16:05
and Keely would have been about 15 and the mother had a bunch of
16:08
flowers for Keely. Keely couldn't understand while
16:12
the why the mother was giving her the flowers when she was the
16:16
one gifting. So I had to explain to her that
16:18
this wasn't just a about her giving an iPad, he was non
16:22
verbal. You were changing the family
16:24
dynamic as well. This family was now going to be
16:27
able to communicate with their child beyond anything they had
16:31
before. She hung onto those flowers for
16:34
about 8-9 months till they were wilted and rotted.
16:37
Because she's never done it for what she can get out of it.
16:41
She's always done it selflessly. So nobody has to go through.
16:44
And that has been the main thing.
16:46
Nobody has to go through what she went through.
16:48
It was a hard time, you know, kids used to come around here
16:51
and knock on the door to play with her and I'd hear her crying
16:54
out the front and they'd be stepping on her right.
16:56
And I went out and I said, if you don't like her that's fine,
17:00
but don't, don't do this to us. Stay away from her.
17:02
And she was hysterical. You know, there was the year
17:05
that we did the grade 4, you know, I want a birthday party.
17:08
I want to invite everyone. I went, Oh my God, we never got
17:11
1 reply. I had booked a jumping castle
17:14
face painter. Keely wanted a dress up day.
17:17
My girlfriend knocked on the door.
17:19
So so she came in with her son and daughter and then that was
17:22
it. So Keely said, mum, what's wrong
17:25
with me? And I said, there's nothing
17:26
wrong with you, sweetheart. It's wrong with everyone else.
17:30
So it's that it's that stigma that Oh my God, that person's
17:34
got a disability. You know, we don't want to
17:36
associate with them and that mother.
17:37
And every time they bring the child, the child plays up Da da
17:40
la. Well, that's really great, but
17:42
let's roll reverse it and let's take the shoe off the foot and
17:45
place it on your own. What if this was you and you had
17:48
a child with a disability and you were navigating the world
17:51
that they're navigating? You know, sometimes people just
17:54
need support and guidance and just someone to say, I might not
17:58
understand your journey, but I'm here to learn.
18:00
And sometimes the more that you learn about their journey
18:03
creates a bigger bond and situation that these kids can
18:08
still be part of a normal life. I've been lucky that my friends,
18:11
when they don't understand, they'll always say, hey, Sharon,
18:14
I'm not sure on this. Can you fill me in?
18:16
What's the go here? And that may be a meltdown or
18:19
whatever. And then I'll explain why they
18:21
do it. And they go, OK, yeah, we get
18:22
that. So Lee, when he first met his
18:25
friends in year 7, he told them that he had Asperger's and
18:29
whatever, and they didn't understand that.
18:30
So because he was in a school that supported neurodivergent
18:34
kids, they went to one of the teachers and said, look, Lee's
18:37
got this, but we don't know what it is.
18:39
And the teacher explained, they go, yeah, OK.
18:41
And then that was the end of it. And then the friendship just
18:43
kept going. But at least they went and asked
18:46
and I think that's more important.
18:48
Like don't judge because sometimes the mum just needs
18:51
support too. They live a very lonely life.
18:54
If there's no friends, it's lonely.
18:56
It's a lonely life for for some of the families.
18:59
Hard to see your kids struggle to be honest.
19:01
Yeah, that's right. And then you've got them that
19:03
have lost their families because their children have a disability
19:07
and their own parents don't understand.
19:09
And that's that's even sadder. Yeah.
19:12
Yeah, So I always say put yourself in that position
19:15
because this could have been you, too.
19:17
It's not, but it could have been.
19:19
And see, this is another thing, you know, when when there's an
19:22
autistic child or whatever, when we meet someone, we want the
19:25
whole romance and, you know, happy ever after and Cinderella.
19:29
But nobody's sitting down and saying, hey, what do we do if we
19:33
have a child with a disability? There's not a discussion about
19:36
that. And there should be.
19:38
And it may never happen, but you've got people that, you
19:40
know, I'm going to have two kids and, and ones gonna be a
19:43
ballerina and ones gonna be a doctor and Oh my God.
19:45
And then they find out they're having a child with a disability
19:48
and it's Oh my God, I never planned on this.
19:50
I never asked for this kid. Right, Jay, you know what I
19:54
mean? Like, you can't kind of
19:55
stipulate and this is what it is and you have to learn to manage
19:59
it. People always say to me, I don't
20:01
know how you do it, Sharon. Well, I had to do it because,
20:04
well, I can't just sit in the corner all day feeling sorry for
20:07
myself because it's not gonna change it.
20:09
So I had to work out. Well, what am I gonna do?
20:12
I'm gonna work best with my kids to understand them and support
20:15
them, 'cause when Lee was diagnosed, he wasn't diagnosed
20:18
till Lee was 10, 'cause he's 34 now and there were no supports
20:22
back then. So you just had to wing it?
20:25
Yep. So you'd learnt to do things
20:28
differently and then it just becomes your norm.
20:31
So I've got a question for you. You have to move into being ACEO
20:35
now. So what have you learnt now from
20:38
moving into a small startup, which really what it is, into an
20:42
absolute foundation and the juggernaut for giving kids
20:45
iPads? Yeah, that's, that was mind
20:48
blowing, Yeah. Because we started off as an
20:50
incorporation and then we took the next step to register
20:55
nationally and follow all those steps to do that.
20:58
And when you register nationally, you kind of go,
21:01
yeah, OK. But then when we first put out
21:04
the iPad applications, they were mainly just Victoria.
21:08
So and then each year as we went, there were a couple of,
21:12
you know, here and there. Now we're hitting every state
21:15
every time. We we usually have our iPad
21:18
applications open for about two to four weeks.
21:22
The last round we had to shut after four hours because we had
21:26
over 250 applications. And these all from everywhere,
21:31
but anyone that could donate an iPad I'm, I think I've spoken to
21:35
you this about this in the past that big businesses that buy
21:39
iPads in bulk and update every year, they can donate iPads
21:44
straight to you. So they can donate straight to
21:46
us and then we send them off to specialist schools because there
21:50
are some specialist schools that have iPads, but unless the
21:53
school can afford them, then they don't have them.
21:56
So that means the kids aren't getting inclusive educations.
21:59
So there's 11 schools that we know of just in Queensland that
22:03
have not one iPad for their child and because Keely went to
22:08
her specialist school in Melton, they had iPads.
22:11
So I just assumed that the the government supported it, you
22:14
know what I mean? It's funded, it's a school.
22:16
But we found out probably two years ago that no, it's not.
22:20
And that's why we were donated 130 iPads from Fire Rescue
22:25
Queensland and they're the ones that have gone out to the
22:29
specialist school. So we gave 4040 second hand ones
22:34
to Ballarat, plus 5 new ones. A mountain specialist school got
22:38
20 and then we went over to Monash Specialist School and
22:42
they got 20. So those kind of iPads go there
22:46
and we have given a couple to family members who are desperate
22:50
who can't wait for that next round round.
22:54
So what we normally do is we we take the children of whoever we
23:00
select due to how many iPads and then sometimes we make them
23:04
reapply because we don't have any.
23:06
And this year, last year we decided not to do that.
23:09
We decided that because of the volume we would put them on a
23:11
wait list. So there's currently 75 plus
23:16
children on the wait list now Australia wide waiting for
23:19
iPads. And part of the gala is why
23:22
we're doing the gala. Last year we raised 41,800
23:26
profit that brought 51 iPads and then we had a lot of sponsors
23:31
that had sponsored a few as well.
23:33
So and I think the beauty of Keely's cause is that we set it
23:36
up to be a win win. So nobody loses.
23:39
So if you sponsor an iPad, you get to meet your recipient and
23:43
their family. So that's a very special thing.
23:46
But getting back because I've gone off jargon as usual, as
23:48
Sharon does, going from incorporation to national to a
23:53
director to CEO, yeah, I'm absolutely honored.
23:58
For me, that kind of journey, I would never have anticipated
24:03
that I would even reach those sort of milestones for myself.
24:07
But that makes me realize that I'm also capable.
24:10
So the things I often doubted myself that, you know, I
24:13
couldn't achieve, I'm doing all them.
24:15
And some, I mean, some of the things I'm doing now, I go,
24:17
well, we were you. Who's in your body, Sharon?
24:20
Because the things that are about to come out are absolutely
24:23
insane. And yeah, I don't know where
24:26
they got that from, but the journey of, you know, always
24:30
being the cheerleader for the kids, I think empowers you back
24:35
because you're pushing them to be their better selves that you
24:38
actually become your own. But iPads are expensive too so
24:42
to be able to give a family that is in need an iPad is so
24:46
rewarding because not every family can buy one No, that's
24:50
right, has technology in the NDIS plan to buy 1.
24:54
So to be able to hand over something that does change
24:57
somebody's life dramatically, it's must be quite overwhelming
25:01
with emotions. Absolutely.
25:03
Especially when you see those people that are receiving them.
25:07
The kids are so grateful, they're so excited.
25:09
But the families, the families are in tears are indebted to
25:13
you, right? Because if you hadn't have done
25:15
it, nobody else would have. Like, we'll message them and or
25:18
ring them and say you've been accepted.
25:20
But there may be a wait list. You can kind of fish out the
25:23
ones that are real and the ones that kind of think this is a,
25:26
you know, let's just get an an iPad for free because they're
25:29
offering them, they're in tears. You've changed their life.
25:34
They're crying because you see them where others don't.
25:38
And then you say you may be on a wait list.
25:39
Well, we don't care how long we wait because we're getting
25:42
something we would never have had before.
25:45
Yes, we know it's going to change their lives completely.
25:48
Yes, we could have done secondhand.
25:50
We could have done something cheaper.
25:52
We could have done the whole lot.
25:53
But the iPad is the tool. The kids that need the prologue
25:57
to go can go straight on there, yeah.
26:02
It's only Apple that offers it, so yeah, you are limited to 1
26:05
brand if you need to. That's right, that's right,
26:08
that's right. So so we decided that Apple is
26:11
what it would be. So it's, I think it's a more
26:16
easier platform to understand for people with autism because
26:20
it's easier to navigate as opposed to going on to something
26:24
else. And that I struggle with
26:26
technology. These kids thrive on it.
26:28
I struggle with it. It does my heading.
26:31
I don't know if it's the age and I'm I used to pick on my mum and
26:34
say she was prehistoric but yeah, kids are calling me that
26:37
now. So you've gone through all this
26:39
stage, you've got to CEO. What made you guys think, hey,
26:43
wouldn't mind putting on a gala? Well, screenshot behind that.
26:47
So everyone had said, you know, you're going to have a gala and
26:50
have a gala. No, no, no, no, we're not ready
26:52
yet. And then last year we kind of
26:54
went, should we have a gala? We're at a position now that
26:59
Kelly's clause needs to be celebrated.
27:01
So it was more about having a gala, celebrating what we've
27:06
done, what we've achieved and everything like that, and
27:08
putting Kelly at the forefront. So last year's 1, Kelly entered
27:12
the room. She made her grandendron down
27:15
the stairway. It was a place to gather and
27:18
see, you know, what kind of money we would raise.
27:21
There was 150 people in the room.
27:24
We kept it at 1:50 and by God, what a night.
27:27
So what a night. What can people expect if
27:31
they're wanting to attend? So we make it, we make it like a
27:34
celebration, right? A lot of people go, oh, I don't
27:36
want to come to a gala. They are so boring and we didn't
27:40
want to make it boring. So we do our formalities, they
27:44
have a few laughs along the way, and then come 9:30, it's party
27:48
and celebrate. So everything's out of the way.
27:51
In between that, the band gets up the plays the music, and then
27:56
once that 930 mark comes, it's party Hardy.
27:59
So like last year, you know, you know, when you go to a concert
28:04
and you do an encore for them to come out when they leave, they
28:07
were doing that at the gala for the band.
28:10
So we actually got the band back because everybody loved them.
28:14
And so they're they're from Brisbane.
28:17
So two of those guys have been on X Factor and Australian Idol.
28:20
So 33 Red. They interact with the the
28:24
crowd, the music was great for everyone.
28:26
Everyone got involved. The money raising, the laughs,
28:31
the chats, the dancing, I think was the highlight, right?
28:34
And the most, the most important feedback I got from the women
28:38
was my God, I feel like a Princess in here because it's
28:43
because the Park Hyatt is fully marbled.
28:47
It is stunning. So there is a few people are
28:50
like, I don't want to dress up Sharon.
28:51
And then they're like, Oh my God, I'm so glad I did.
28:53
I feel like a Princess. I feel so elegant.
28:56
So we were only going to have the one gala and then there was
29:00
a call out. Well, are you going to have
29:02
another? So we went.
29:03
You're OK, we'll do 1. We'll do an encore performance.
29:06
So this is our encore because the band's coming back.
29:09
Obviously we have you, Sarah, doing our roving MC, which will
29:13
be really exciting. I can't wait for that, she says.
29:16
Oh my God. Live up to the hype.
29:19
No, no, no. You're all gorgeous.
29:21
Gotcha. No pressure.
29:22
No pressure. We just want you to be you,
29:25
right? We love you as you at your best.
29:28
What is something so if anyone was thinking about buying any
29:32
tickets or sponsoring or donating, what would you say to
29:36
them and how would they get in contact with you?
29:38
OK, so obviously Facebook and Instagram have the link on
29:43
anything on the Keely's Cause website comes directly to me.
29:47
The link is in the event page or you can e-mail me.
29:52
You can buy a single ticket for 2:50 for those that want to come
29:56
and they're struggling with, you know, maybe the cost of it.
30:00
We can make a payment arrangement.
30:02
We're happy to do that. We did it last year and it was
30:04
successful. There's a table of 10 that is
30:07
then discounted to 2200, or there's a featured table for
30:11
3000 that has your logo and everything and you get mentioned
30:15
on the night and that's table of 10 and yadda, yadda, yadda.
30:20
Every bit of money made from that gala goes to buy iPads.
30:25
Like I said, we bought 51 last year from the 41,000, and we
30:31
will have those kids that receive those iPads up on the
30:35
screens so that everybody knows where their money went and who
30:39
they supported. And I think that's the most
30:40
important thing. We show where your money goes.
30:43
Yeah, and that's why having the sponsorships and meeting your
30:47
recipients is really important, because if the business or
30:50
organization wants to extend that relationship with the
30:54
family, they're able to do that. But the family is indebted to
30:58
the sponsor and they will shout them from the rooftop.
31:01
So that's why I say it's a win win because nobody loses.
31:04
Your money isn't just going into a pool that just sits there and
31:08
we do things we probably shouldn't be doing.
31:11
It goes directly to iPads because without that support
31:14
there's so many lives that need to be changed.
31:17
So the cool thing is that you don't have to be in the
31:19
disability and care sector to come to the gala or donate.
31:23
No, I know that you have had sponsors that have come from
31:27
building and need construction. Construction, we had office
31:30
works, we have stage people W traffic.
31:34
They're sponsors. They come from all walks of life
31:37
because they like what we do. They like that they can see a
31:42
child evolve, that they've given them something that contributes
31:46
to their well-being. I think that's, that's, that's a
31:50
good point. We're not just a charity that's
31:53
just, you know, doing this or doing that.
31:55
We're actually doing something that creates change, that
31:59
changes lives, gives opportunity.
32:01
Like we're setting them up to be effective members in their
32:05
community to go on and get employment to fulfil those
32:08
dreams that they want to be where they don't have to doubt
32:10
themselves every day that they're never going to be
32:12
somebody. And there's nothing worse than
32:16
being segregated and feeling that you can't be anyone because
32:19
society still keeps you down. So at least the iPad and through
32:24
inclusive education, gives them hope.
32:26
It gives them a drive that they can, you know, do better.
32:30
So we gave one iPad to a girl over the other side of town.
32:35
She's now doing animated. Yes, yeah, yes.
32:38
Because that was her dream, and she could never attain it.
32:41
But since having the iPad, she's gone leaps and bounds.
32:45
So yeah. And then you know, we gave 1 to
32:48
a little boy in Perth. He was 9 at the time.
32:51
He has cerebral palsy, he has autism, he's non verbal.
32:57
His mum wrote me an e-mail to say he was having 9 meltdowns a
33:02
day, school wasn't understanding him, he was acting out, yada
33:07
yada yada. We gave him an iPad and she
33:10
emailed me 9 days later to tell me that she had a changed child.
33:16
He was no longer having meltdowns.
33:18
He was regulating. He had his individual learning
33:21
plan. He was communicating.
33:22
So we had an interview with the project one year just after
33:27
Keeley won the Diana Award and he was one of the recipients
33:31
that we chose to be on the Power.
33:33
I mean on the Project. And when we saw that video,
33:36
because we never saw the interview tool that came on TV,
33:39
and when I was watching him on TV and he was just sitting there
33:43
with his iPad, and this was not the child that I had met.
33:48
So it was proof in the pudding. And as she said, it's changed
33:52
his life for the better because it gave him purpose.
33:55
The iPad helped him regulate his meltdowns, and he was able to
33:58
learn. So the frustrations often from
34:02
disabilities is their inability to understand or learn or be
34:06
accepted. And This is why they have their
34:08
meltdowns. It's not just because they're a
34:10
naughty child, it's because they don't have the tools that they
34:14
need to thrive. They're not like everybody else,
34:17
they don't think the same. And the more that we adapt to
34:20
the different ways people learn, the better off everyone will be.
34:23
So, you know, if an iPad is all that they need to fulfil their
34:29
life and feel safe in our world, then why wouldn't we give them
34:33
one? Yeah, 100%.
34:34
So what is like, what's the goal for the future for you guys?
34:39
Is it what's coming on your iPad?
34:42
Get and deliver them to people or.
34:45
Yep. So we're hoping that my.
34:46
Project. Well, there's a side project.
34:49
So we are looking at, we want to be able to source funding that's
34:53
ongoing, right. Donations are great and we
34:56
appreciate them. But because we've got so many
34:58
kids now that need them and are sitting on the wait list, in a
35:01
small amount of time, we want to be able to get ongoing funding
35:05
with corporates or whatever to be able to be pushing out at
35:09
least 100 a year. If we can do a hundred a year,
35:12
it's 100 lives changed. Is this 100 like from donated
35:17
from like? Yep, sponsored whatever, and the
35:20
donations will still go in the pool, but least we know that at
35:24
least 100 children will be guaranteed assistance each year.
35:29
Anything above that would be a high priority bonus.
35:34
So where are you at the moment for numbers?
35:36
Because we're in May. We're in. 7.5 months left till
35:41
the. End We've got 75 kids on the
35:44
wait list already. And if we open the rounds again
35:48
in August, we may have to stop doing that this year for the
35:52
very first time because we need to fulfill those 75 on the wait
35:57
list. Otherwise we open it.
35:59
If it does what it did last year, we're going to have
36:01
another 250 kids on the wait list, right?
36:05
So then you've got 320 kids on a wait list and we don't want them
36:10
sitting there very long. No, that's fair, because I
36:13
would. We'd rather them communicate and
36:16
be. Increasingly bad.
36:18
A lot of a lot of the kids are still on telehealth appointments
36:21
because not much changed after COVID.
36:24
A lot of people are still working from home.
36:26
But these families can't do telehealth because they don't
36:29
have the equipment. So not only is NDIS not giving
36:32
the support, there's still that stigma around the telehealth.
36:38
But not everybody has the capacity to have the technology.
36:42
Do you? You're looking at families that
36:44
most of the parents have given up work on a full time basis to
36:47
look after their kids, right. But usually, correct, have a
36:50
choice, Correct. Which we didn't hear.
36:52
They're on carer payment. By the time they pay their
36:55
rents, paying their bills, go round and drive their kids to
36:59
all the, you know, places that they need to go to get their
37:02
children's support or help. They're lucky if they're left
37:05
with $10 a week, Right. Yeah, $10 doesn't sound much,
37:08
but when you're putting that away each week to pay off
37:11
something which they probably won't take $10.00 for, they
37:15
can't afford it. They're lucky if the $10 is
37:17
going to buy him bread and milk for the week.
37:19
So that's why we put our focus on low socio economic families,
37:23
right? Because then that way we can
37:25
fizzle out who can afford an iPad and who can't, right?
37:29
So with us, you've got to have a pension card in the mother, in
37:33
the parents name with the child listed.
37:36
We don't take the green card that is the child disability
37:41
card because that means that parents, their parents or one of
37:47
their parents is working full time.
37:50
Yeah, so on the carer allowance, families can still earn up to
37:54
200 and 2200 and 50,000 and still receive that payment.
37:59
That's why we chose doing the, you know, the pension and the
38:03
lows income and the family assessment assistance because
38:07
then we know they're the families that are struggling the
38:09
most and they're the ones we need to support. 100% because
38:13
yeah it is it does it make you feel like you're reliving or re
38:18
seeing sometimes your family when you're giving these iPads
38:21
away? Yeah, Keely.
38:23
Keely makes me. Keely growing up made me look at
38:26
my own life through her eyes. Keely Keely's bringing up and
38:30
her journey was a lot like mine. I never put the two together,
38:33
but now I'm starting to. But when you see that in other
38:36
families, because we struggled, we were a family and we still
38:39
do. Like we're not rich and famous
38:42
or anything like that. We've got a roof over our ahead.
38:45
We're lucky to have a home that you know that the, what do you
38:49
call it? The bills are paid, the food is
38:52
we've got it. But there's a lot of families
38:55
out there that don't. And with the rents and
38:57
everything that's going up skyrocket, like, yeah, I don't
39:00
know how. To do it like we'll be honest
39:01
with you, because I'm looking at all what the funding and how
39:04
people are getting cut and all that stuff.
39:06
And remember the time will probably, oh God, some time ago
39:11
when I was much more younger and I didn't have so many laughter
39:14
lines, I used to do a well, I used to do a like work for a
39:20
youth group and it was on a Friday night and was kids with
39:23
there were adults with disabilities in like 18.
39:26
They used to turn up and we'd run programs for three or four
39:29
hours. Those parents were like, Oh my
39:31
God, I'm I'm going to have dinner with my husband.
39:34
I haven't had one dinner with my husband.
39:37
I can't remember the last time I had dinner with my husband.
39:40
Now we went to dinner and we didn't know what to talk about,
39:42
but I've got to have dinner with my husband.
39:44
So like there is these little things and especially with
39:48
what's going on and how it's cut, it just feels like it's
39:50
going to be more isolating for families.
39:53
And having an iPad open and expands people's communication.
39:56
Excellent. But cutting into this type of
39:58
stuff is unfair. That's right.
40:00
And I've always been in the community sector line.
40:03
So before Keely started Keely's cause, I worked with women of
40:08
domestic violence. So when my kids were younger, so
40:11
Lee was four and two, and I left my husband back in those days,
40:15
we were struggling at one point and I had to go to the food
40:19
bank. And back then, you only went to
40:22
the food bank if you lived on the street.
40:24
Yeah. So I'm going up to the food bank
40:26
door, crying my eyes out, apologising truthfully because
40:32
I'm so sorry to use it. And.
40:34
And one of the ladies from the church opened the door and she
40:37
said, why are you crying? And I said to her, because I'm
40:40
so sorry. Like there are other people that
40:43
probably need this more than me, but I just need to get some food
40:46
for my kids. And she said to me, just
40:49
remember, this is only for now. It's not a life sentence.
40:53
You'll get there in the end. Yeah.
40:56
And you know what, She was exactly right.
40:58
And that's exactly what I tell the parents and the people that
41:02
I work with, because it's not a life sentence.
41:05
And I look at it as it's a time where you kind of hit rock
41:08
bottom that makes you change your life for the better.
41:11
And I think if you don't hit that journey, you never really
41:15
fulfill your life properly to understand what you want and
41:18
where you're headed. So quite fulfilled now.
41:22
Absolutely. I have a family that I adore,
41:25
that adore me. I have 3 kids that are doing
41:28
amazing things. I'm proud of each and one of one
41:30
of them. And I have a tight knit family
41:33
because I've always supported my family.
41:35
I've always been there to be their cheerleader no matter
41:38
what, through every loss, through every gain, and just
41:41
kept them afloat as best as I could.
41:44
That now has come back to I have three adult children who now
41:48
have their own children that go, Oh my God, mum, we understand
41:54
now everything that you did for us and we appreciate you beyond
41:58
anything. And that is the most important
42:02
and heartfelt reward I've had my whole entire life.
42:06
I've had a lot of rewards along the way, but that one, when you
42:09
know that you've made it a change and that your kids
42:12
appreciate you, that's bigger than Ben Hur.
42:15
So anyone listening, is there anything that I have missed when
42:19
it came to the gala or the organization?
42:22
No, the gala. You need to be at the gala if
42:24
there's one place you're going to be for a great night out.
42:27
You get to come hang out. More importantly, to let your
42:30
hair down. What did you say?
42:31
Sorry, my website. The website is WWW dot Keeley's
42:38
cause K double Keeley's cause on Facebook, Keeley's cause on
42:42
Instagram. Everything comes directly to me,
42:45
every e-mail, every message. So if you need any support or
42:48
some answers, yeah, just yell out as opposed to what's next.
42:53
There's what's coming for more support for our families and
42:57
people out there that are neurodivergent or have
43:00
intellectual disabilities. I think while they talk about an
43:04
inclusive world, it's, it's a long way off.
43:08
Yeah, a long way off. So if we can still, you know,
43:11
banter and and be there to support because we don't just
43:14
supply the iPad, we sort of support the family behind the
43:18
scenes as well. Every year we run a giving day.
43:21
So we give brand new goods, brand new clothing to any
43:23
disability family that can get where we are.
43:26
Brand new Lego. We do that every year because a
43:29
lot of families are lonely at Christmas.
43:31
So we make sure that their their Christmas is going to be a
43:34
fabulous 1. So we do a lot to remove of that
43:37
loneliness bracket. Yeah, because it is a tough
43:40
life. I mean I had to do mine from I
43:43
had the two young kids right up until they were what was Keely
43:47
was 12 whatever when she yeah, Lee was 12/13 when Keely come
43:53
along and I just had the two kids by myself.
43:55
So it was just me single mum doing it all.
43:58
So yeah, so right. It's been a journey.
44:04
And I would have to say to people that as tough as the road
44:08
is, being a disability parent, it's the most rewarding one
44:12
because when you overlook the meltdowns and the troubles that
44:16
you've got and you have that one amount of love that that child
44:20
gives to you is is priceless. You just got to work out a way
44:25
to understand their world. I've been 100% lucky that my
44:29
kids have taken me into their world and trusted me enough.
44:32
And what a world it is. And what they see and what we
44:34
see are completely two different things.
44:37
But their worlds are absolutely ritual.
44:39
So. Yeah, so just just hang in
44:43
there. It's a roller coaster ride, but
44:45
it's one that sometimes you think you want to throw your
44:47
hands up in the air. But I wouldn't change mine for
44:50
the world because my children have made me a better person by
44:53
understanding their world and their journey.
44:55
So I've learnt more than I ever anticipated.
44:58
So thank you so much for you're. So very welcome.
45:02
I cannot wait to be on the D4 on the 20th of June like my
45:06
hopeful. Bringing lots of friends with
45:08
you. It's.
45:09
Hot. I hope you're booking lots of
45:11
tables. Wait, wait in.
45:13
No. Well, that's good.
45:14
We are too and it's getting closer.
45:16
It's only 5 weeks away for those.
45:18
That don't have no tickets? Links to the tickets?
45:20
Thank you. So much better be getting better
45:22
be getting on the ticket line because last year we sold out
45:26
and we did have a lot of people say, you know, like even 2 days
45:29
before can we buy tickets? Can we buy tickets?
45:31
And we went nowhere, sold out and they went, oh really?
45:34
So there's a chance that it will do exactly the same because it
45:39
was such a great night and we've got a lot of the same people
45:42
coming back, but we've also got so many new people that heard
45:46
what was a fun event last year that they missed out, that they
45:49
were signing up for this year, so they didn't miss out.
45:51
So this will be our last gala for a couple of years because we
45:55
don't want to do 1 every year. This is just kind of an encore
45:58
performance from last year's success.
46:01
And then we'll take a bit of a break.
46:02
And if we do another gala, then we do.
46:04
And if not, we'll find something else.
46:06
But yeah, all. Right.
46:07
Thank you so much. No, thank you for having me.
46:10
Great to talk to you, Sarah.