Country: Argentina

Organization: Heme Aqui Asociación Civil Sin Fines de Lucro

Sport - Other

Year the initative began (yyyy) - 1999

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Project URL: http://www.hemeaqui.org.ar

What is your signature innovation, your new idea, in one sentence? - Golf is the only sport that gives us the chance to play as equals, through Handicap, according to our own capacities.

Describe your innovation. What makes your idea unique and different than others doing work in the field? - TAVISION: Tact and vision to accelerate learning process.
ACTIVAR: Recreational activities for golf playing adaptation. Didactic materials for sport leaders, parents and students. Pedagogical activities between parents and children.
NEMOMUSICA: Heme Aquí music as an essential part of the educational process.
PARGOLF: Coordination and concentration exercises.
ALOGOLF: The greeting as a social integration form
SOCIOPARES: Social contact: students belonging group.
SOCIOPADRES: Social contact: parents belonging group.
ETIGOLF: Ethic and moral values learning.
ALOGOLF: Guidelines for interacting with other young people.
This model is applied in different areas according to the subject that is being taught.
Human Node:
Understand humans as a spiritual–existential-bio-psycho person.
Help the person value the present circumstances, going beyond their own limits and finding a meaning.
Help the person discover his own freedom in order to transform it into a personal answer towards life.
Ludic, social and cultural activities
Organizing social integration activities
Organizing integration activities for disable children and their parents.
Informal lectures for parents
Special guests.
Sport Node:
Golf specific lessons.Gymnastics
Integration, coordination and concentration exercises
Integrated tournaments. Individual tournaments
Family tournaments.
Tournaments under Golf Personalities observation Field trips around the country for students to participate in integrated tournaments outside their schools. Educative Node:
Special song for enhance golf learning.

What are the existing barriers, the biggest problem, your innovation is hoping to address/change? - Our main barrier is the lack of information about the skills and capacities people with special needs have. We look for Knowledge and Integration through golf lessons. Education gives as the opportunity to get to know the other and accept them. Integrated Golf tournaments, where “common” golf players participate, gives us a chance to integrate people with differing needs and their healthy peers where all play as equals. It is part of the rules of this singular sport, that taking under consideration the different capacities of each player equals the possibilities of

Delivery Model: How do you implement your innovation and apply it to the challenge/problem you are addressing? - We organize a two hour golf lesson, once or twice a week, depending on each golf school schedule. During the first hour lesson our students receive a trainee focus on the Goldfinger Model, which is developed by one of our Sport Leaders. On the second hour lesson the students are trained specifically by a golf teacher. Each class is thought in order to increase and integrate the bio-psycho-spiritual skills of our students. We work with music composed specially for learning to play golf, choreographies, gymnastic, coordination and concentration exercises. We also consider of great importance the group social interaction of people with special needs and people without disabilities, therefore besides the integrated tournaments, we celebrate birthdays, national holidays, organize informal lectures, family tournaments, and diverse social integration activities.

How do you plan to grow your innovation? - Organizing seminars, sport leaders courses as a job opportunity, opening new golf schools around the country and abroad, creating audiovisual materials and new pedagogic CDs.
Our organization publish two books written by the Director and Creator of our first Heme Aqui golf school. In these books you can find the theoretical and conceptual frame of Heme Aqui golf schools, practice examples and a kit of CDs that develop the methodological steps following the Goldfinger Model.

Provide one sentence describing your impact/intended impact. - The golf player with special needs finds a new place through the awareness of the development of his abilities, his new skills and the recognition of his family and

What impact has your innovation had to date/or what is your intended impact? Exactly who are the beneficiaries? - We have notice the positive impact our schools have helping to recognize people with special needs possibilities when learning a sport. Golf is frequently title as hard sport to learn because of the numbers of implements needed at the field, and hard sport to play because of the obstacles the fields presents.
Most of our beneficiaries are children and young people with low or moderate mental disabilities. Lately, we have also received a number of students with physical disabilities. We have 200 students. Considering family, health professionals, golf teachers and golf players attending to the integrated tournaments the beneficiaries number adds over 4900 people.

Please list any other measures reflective of the impact of your innovation? - The feedback we received after our integrated golf tournaments has shown the “open minded” effect our work has between participants. While playing golf, ordinary people learn to share with those with special needs. Everybody learns about effort, dedication, joy and the importance of accomplishing goals. The achievement of these values helps us in the construction of a more equity and solidarity society.

What are the main barriers to creating or achieving your impact? - Our main barrier is an economic one. Our students depend on their parents for transportation and assistance to the golf field.

How is your initiative financed (or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)? - Our financing is through sponsors. The school offers free golf education. It could be finance by organizations who cares for integration and a more equity and solidarity society.

If known, provide information on your finances and organization. - Please list: Annual budget, annual revenue generated, size of part-time, full-time and volunteer staff. This field has not been completed

What is the potential demand for your innovation? - Organize more and better golf schools. According to this goal we calculate a 15.000 Argentinean Pesos monthly budget per school. This budget includes students transportation, teachers, sports leaders and health professional salaries, studying materials, golf tournaments organization, and advertising and promotion activities.

What are the main barriers to financial sustainability? - Our sponsors not always are able to finance our maintenance costs. Sometimes is hard for them to compromise with a monthly help through time. Therefore we need to increase the number of sponsors.

What is the origin of this innovation? Tell us your story. - Over 30 years, I have been playing and involved with this sport. I love playing golf. Golf has always been part of my life, and since my daughters were born, has also been part of my family. My middle daughter, who is 21 years old, has Down syndrome. I have always been worried about her playing sports with other children as an equal. Group sports ended being hard sports for her. The dynamic of these sports differ with her capacity of response and agility. Seven years ago we both started sharing the golf field. Our experience showed me the potential golf had with people with special needs.
Handicap is a wonderful word. It gives an advantage to those who are beginning to play this sport. This helps people with different abilities to play under an equality of opportunities at a golf field. The golf game requires time. You walk the field for hours, and during that time you have the chance to get to know the people that are playing on the field with you, developing with your fellows a special bond. This mutual knowledge of each other works like an open mind disposal. The fellow with normal needs starts playing with his mental or physical disability fellow, and ends up the game playing with a person who has feelings and abilities just like him.
I work for a more equity, solidarity and inclusive society. People with special needs have awareness of their special being and they notice when being neglected or obstructed at the consequence of their

Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers marketing material. - This field has not been completed