New Venture Puts Focus on Fitness for the Disabled

Lions Celebrate 35 Years with Donations to Local Charities

Emu Plains Lions Club will celebrate 35 years of helping the local community and charities this month, by holding an Anniversary Dinner at Emu Sports Club in Leonay.

A new fitness venture dedicated to people living with disabilities has officially launched in Emu Heights.

Boxability is a new boxing focused training regime designed specifically for those with any sort of disability including autism, brain injuries, genetic conditions, physical or mobility issues and neurological impairment.

And for founder, Penrith local and father of three Mark Steenholdt, the inspiration behind it is deeply personal.

“Just over two years ago, a week before his first birthday, my son Hudson underwent emergency open heart surgery,” he said.

“He survived but was left with an acquired brain injury as a result.”

Mr Steenholdt said the experience was traumatic for both him and his wife Kylie.

"Once Huddy came out of his induced coma, his memory was completely wiped, and he was back to being in a newborn state, he didn't even recognise his sister or my wife and I. Not one thing about him was the same, not even his smile.

“He had to relearn everything and he's still relearning. He’s also still suffering from all the effects that come from an acquired brain injury. Thankfully through his therapies, he's made amazing progress in some areas and hopefully will continue to,” he said.

“The past couple of years have been a steep learning curve for us, I had never really appreciated or understood the immense level of support, time and dedication required to properly care for a loved one with a disability. It is enormous.”

Then, a year ago when Hudson first started doing dancing classes at The Heights Studio Mark saw firsthand how important physical activity, a sense of achievement and community was for his son’s quality of life.

“You can see the joy it sparks in his face, he absolutely loves it, seeing the difference in his ability when he first started and at the end of year concert brought me to tears,” he said.

“I was so proud, and so thankful to his teacher and the dance school for making that achievable for him.

“I also work as a part time disability carer and as part of that, used my boxing and personal training background to train a couple of young brothers Josh and Jacob McAndrew, both 22, who live with autism and developmental delay.

“Once again, the change in their outlook, the sense of achievement, pride and dedication was almost immediately obvious.” r Feature Article: [L] Hudson Steenholdt has an acquired brain injury after undergoing emergency open heart surgery [R + Cover] Boxing trainer and Hudson's father Mark Steenholdt with Jacob McAndrew who lives with autism and development delay | Images/Article: Boxability

Their mother Rebecca McAndrew said she noticed the positive changes in her sons almost instantly.

“They absolutely love training with Mark, they show me their growing muscles, have taken up healthier habits and are always ready an hour before the weekly sessions,” she said.

“Honestly there is nothing like this that is readily available for the local disabled community, we have been crying out for it and it will help people like my boys so very much.

Ultimately Mr Steenholdt hopes to build enough support for the new business to offer employment opportunities to his clientele.

“I’d really like to be able to create a judgement free, safe, and inclusive space for the local disabled community and ultimately improve their quality of life.

Boxability classes currently run through the week at The Heights Dance Studio in Emu Heights. Classes are open to the public and disability organisations can also make private bookings at a day and time suitable for their group.

Visit www.boxability.com.au, follow the Facebook page or contact Mark directly on 0402 892726 for more information.

The Club will distribute donations from their various activities; proceeds from the sales of Christmas cakes, puddings and Christmas trees, raffles, Bunnings and other BBQ’s, Chocolate Wheel in Westfield Penrith, and other charitable work.

The charities who will benefit on the night will be local charities, consisting of Westcare, The Haven, Paying it Forward, Little by Little (Kurambee School), Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy, Sailability, Australian Lions Foundation, Nepean Room of Ronald McDonald House and the Cancer Care Centre at Nepean Hospital.

Cheryl Devine, Emu Plains Lions Club President recently commented to the Emu and Leonay Gazette, “These donations couldn’t be achieved without the support of the local community”.

There will be time for indulgence in the celebrations, with an acknowledgement of service to Lions John Choma, a Founding Member of Emu Plains Lions Club, and 49 years in Lions overall.

Emu Plains Lions Club is also ‘sporting’ a new look BBQ, with a trailer gifted by Jim Aitken and Partners.

For more information about the Club, you can find them on Facebook.

Parents

Article Written + Submitted by:

Monica Purcell |

Family Facilitator

Nepean Community & Neighbourhood Services

W: www.nepeancommunity.org.au

E: info@nepeancommunity.org.au

Responding to Children’s Good Behaviour

Many parenting articles talk about dealing with difficult behaviour and yet, the ways we respond to children’s positive behaviour is just as important.

Due to an inbuilt negativity bias, we pay more attention to the bad than the good. The human species has survived for over 200,000 years in part because of our capacity to be alerted early to potential threats. While a focus on the negative would be useful for survival in the Savannah, it can greatly harm a parent’s relationship with their child when left unchecked.

For children with behavioural difficulties and their parents, a vicious cycle can develop over time. When a child behaves in a manner which elicits a punitive, angry, or hostile response from the parent, this often provokes the child to behave in an even more disruptive manner, and then the conflict escalates and continues.

Conversely, we build more positive relationships with children when we notice and remark on behaviour we appreciate. It helps children learn social and other life skills, it builds children’s confidence and sense of self, and it re-connects us to our love for our children.

The first step is to notice when you feel good (e.g., relief, comfort, pride, delight) in response to something your child has said or done. For specific behaviour concerns, look out for the exceptions. For example, if you are concerned about your child swearing, look out for times when your child speaks politely.

Focus on conveying genuine feelings, rather than providing an evaluation of the child’s behaviour. Avoid vague platitudes like “good boy/good girl”. Praise that feels mechanical or disingenuous can feel manipulative for the child.

Talk about how your child’s action positively affected you. Impacts might be concrete (e.g., in time, energy, money) or relate to your values (e.g., honesty, integrity, respect). Specifically describe the behaviour that you appreciated and why. For example, “I appreciate it when you wash up your cup, because now I have less dishes to do later.”

Sharing appreciation is one of the most powerful ways of building your bond with your child, so it is worth taking the time and effort to do it well and often.