Disabled entrepreneur wants more support for special needs children

Born with arthrogryposis, a condition that causes the joints to stiffen, 18-year-old Nathaniel Bailey hasn't let his disability stop him from chasing big dreams or from living life to the fullest.

The Prime Minister Youth Awardee is also a past valedictorian of the school transition exercise of the Early Stimulation Programme (ESP), which provides early intervention and developmental support for children with various intellectual and physical disabilities. On Wednesday, he returned as guest speaker at another transition exercise at the Apostolic Church of Jamaica in Kingston, which saw 74 new graduates completing the programme. Bailey pleaded with parents to keep believing in their children, no matter their challenges.

"I always say, it doesn't only boil down to the government and what they can do. It starts off with the home," Bailey told THE STAR. "If the parents aren't there behind their children, they will never succeed, whether they're able-bodied or have a special disability. So at the end of the day, it starts with the parents motivating and empowering their children to do the best that they can be. And then the government just does what they can."

A proud past student of Jamaica College, Bailey is known as Kripx on social media, where he shares light-hearted jokes about his disability, videos of himself partying, and clips that show he's determined to live a full life despite the challenges.

"My business is Kripx Entertainment, a party and event promotion company. I am a party promoter plus I have a foundation that is aiming to give back to the disabled community," he said.

"I'm studying cybersecurity at UTech because I love computers, I just keep motivated and doing what I love," he added.

Watching this year's graduates who will be transitioning into the formal education system, Bailey said he felt "immense pleasure" seeing the programme continuing to change lives.

"As an old valedictorian, it gives me immense pleasure to see that there's 74 wonderful souls that are here graduating. It gives me joy to see them do well and move on to the next step to be successful," he said.

Bailey also expressed hope that more programmes like this will emerge, so that children with disabilities have even more opportunities.

"I'm sure that in the near future, there will be programmes, more schools like stimulation plus, to help all the disabled students. And I personally will help the students with disabilities once I'm able to," he said.

"A child's potential shouldn't be measured by diagnosis but by determination, confidence, and the support they get."

Of this year's cohort of graduates, 56 will move on to primary special education institutions, while 18 will integrate into the regular school system. Many of the students entered the ESP with severe developmental challenges, but have made remarkable progress.