Miri Sunflower Special Child Center Has 77 Students: Hopes to Cultivate More Outstanding Disabled Athletes

(Miri, 15th) The chairman of Miri Sunflower Special Child Rehabilitation Center (PDK Sunflower), Samson Bala Palaba, stated that the center currently has 77 students from different age groups and hopes to cultivate more outstanding disabled athletes in the future.

He mentioned in a speech during the visit activity of the Miri Division 2025 Dayak Harvest Festival organizing committee this morning that students from the center have been selected to participate in state-level disability sports competitions. This is an honor and encourages everyone to continue working hard to create more opportunities for students to showcase their talents.

He said the center organizes diverse activities such as visits to Kuala Baram Crocodile Farm and Wildlife Park, taekwondo training, mowing, environmental cleaning, cooking, cookie making, traditional and modern dance classes, singing, handicraft making, laundry, etc., aiming to help the students adapt to social life, enhance self-care abilities, and prepare for future workplace integration.

“For younger students, the center also provides early intervention programs as a preparatory stage for future vocational training.”

He added that the center was officially established at the end of 2012, and the current management committee consists of seven members, including parents of students and volunteers, with elections held every two years. The center currently has one manager and 16 employees, all with different academic backgrounds, who have participated in various training courses organized by relevant units to enhance teaching and administrative efficiency.

He stated that in 2022, the center received a national five-star management rating and won the National Excellent Community Rehabilitation Center Award in the same year. In 2024, it was awarded the State-Level Excellent Rehabilitation Center Award.

Additionally, the center has also excelled in sports, including collaborating with students from another rehabilitation center in Miri to participate in the disability taekwondo competition held in Klang last year, winning a total of five gold medals, while the Miri Rehabilitation Center won one gold. Two students also won gold medals in the 3rd One Heart International Disability Taekwondo Competition held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, from November 29 to December 1, 2023.

He pointed out that the center's funding primarily comes from government grants, covering rental, utilities, staff, and student allowances. Last year, the government approved a grant of nearly RM500,000 , compared to over 300,000 MYR the previous year, mainly because the students' allowance increased from RM150  to RM300  per month.

Samson Bala thanked the government for its continuous support and hopes that all sectors of society will continue to pay attention to and assist in the development of special groups, creating a more hopeful future for them together.