Canon organizes basketball clinic for special children

 MANILA, Philippines - Canon spearheaded a sports-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) program for the first time through a basketball clinic for special children at the San Lorenzo Village Park in Makati City.

In this event, children from two beneficiary groups were introduced to the sport of basketball: Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines, Inc. (DSAPI) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) Society of the Philippines.

Basketball coach and athlete Charles Tiu, together with professional basketball players Dylan Ababou, Sean Anthony and JVee Casio, helped the children explore their potential in the sport.

“Basketball is an effective venue for applying discipline and teamwork,” Tiu said.  “It’s fun and exciting, and it will really shape the children into well-rounded individuals.”

 The activity also held a special meaning to Anthony who had experience training children with in AD/HD in Canada.  “I learned that if you focus your extreme energy into something positive, you’ll go even farther than you expected,” he shared

Tony Pasia, head of DSAPI, said:  “This gave the children an outlet to express themselves through something different and just have fun for the day.  Also, it allowed the pros to interact with these kids.  Pasia added that one of the most important motives for these activities is to expose people to the lives of the children with special needs. 

“A closer look at their struggles would enable people to understand them more and see how special they truly are.” he said.