The Hold My Hand Foundation in P\u00e9cs has been supporting adults with intellectual\ndisabilities since 1991. Its goal is to provide assistance that nurtures independence while\nupholding human dignity. Gitta Szvacsekn\u00e9 Jahn explained how this is achieved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The idea behind the Hold My Hand Foundation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Whenever she returns to the daycare center, to this day she is greeted by the Youngsters\u2019\nbeaming eyes and their loud cries of \u201cHi, Gitta!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gitta refers to herself not as a founder, but rather as the initiator of the idea. She began her\ncareer as a teacher, then in the late 1980s took on volunteer work in the field of elder care. It\nwas during this period that she first experienced institutional coldness and later discovered\nsimilar inadequacies in the care provided to young people with disabilities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Akkoriban a rendszert a nagyl\u00e9tsz\u00e1m\u00fa \u00e1llami int\u00e9zm\u00e9nyek uralt\u00e1k, \u00e9s sok sz\u00fcl\u0151ben mer\u00fclt fel a k\u00e9rd\u00e9s: \u201eMi lesz, amikor a gyermekem befejezi az iskol\u00e1t?<\/em>\u201d \u2013 Ez a tapasztalat hat\u00e1ssal volt Gitta kialakul\u00f3 szeml\u00e9letm\u00f3dj\u00e1ra: \u201eszakmai szempontb\u00f3l mindig azt mondtuk: ameddig lehet, maradjon a Fiatal csal\u00e1di k\u00f6zegben. Ha pedig feln\u0151tt\u00e9 v\u00e1lik, a szakembernek, pedag\u00f3gusnak a sz\u00fcl\u0151vel egy\u00fctt kell seg\u00edteni a lev\u00e1l\u00e1st, a feln\u0151tt\u00e9 v\u00e1l\u00e1st<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Building on this idea, they launched the foundation in 1991 together with a few parents and professionals.C\u00e9lunk az volt, hogy <\/em>a t\u00f6meges \u00e1llami ell\u00e1t\u00e1ssal ellent\u00e9tben emberk\u00f6zpont\u00fa, szem\u00e9lyre szabott t\u00e1mogat\u00e1st <\/em><\/strong>ny\u00fajtsunk<\/em>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n In view of this, the structure of the emerging community was guided by the principle that Youngsters come first,<\/strong> followed by parents, and only then professionals \u2013 all working together as equal partners.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The first steps with the Youngsters <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n To put this approach into practice, the team of founders began working with the Youngsters \u2013\nfocusing on questions such as: \u201cWho am I? What is my dream? What do I want?\u201d<\/em>\u2013 The Youngsters picked up this way of thinking quite easily, but the process was more difficult for\nthe parents; they were used to a different mindset. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This partnership and the Youngsters' growing sense of self-awareness led to conflicts with\ntheir parents, who often disputed the foundation\u2019s approach. Over the years, they had\nbecome accustomed to the idea that, because their child had a disability, they had to\ntake the lead:<\/strong> not only to care for them, but also to make decisions on their behalf. The\nfoundation\u2019s professionals, however, wanted \u201cthe Youngster to be raised to be independent<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Gitta says that, in the end, they were \u201ctamed\u201d through the Youngsters, but at first the parents\nexperienced mixed emotions. On the one hand, they were happy to see their child developing,\nand grateful that they could know they were in a supportive environment while they focused\non their work. At the same time, however, they were also protective of their child, and in\nmany cases experienced it as resistance when the Youngster no longer needed their constant\nguidance. This became especially visible in everyday situations involving routine decisions:\n<\/em>\u201cwe taught them that, even if it made the process a little slower, we should allow the\nYoungster to decide for themselves what clothes to wear or when to get up.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n To help parents process the difficulties that come with their child becoming an adult, Gitta\nand her colleagues organized conferences for them. Over time, not only the Youngsters and\nprofessionals, but the parents\u2019 own development also became visible: \u201clittle by little, they\nreached a point where letting go of their disabled child became less painful.\u201d Gitta\nemphasizes that the trauma an average parent experiences when letting go of their adult child\n\u201cnever truly disappears in the case of parents raising a disabled child. Parents are often even\nmore vulnerable than the Youngsters themselves.\u201d<\/em><\/strong>.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSchool for Parents\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The founding team\u2019s goal was for the Youngsters to feel valued, while the parents would\nlearn to accept that their child with disabilities was no longer a child anymore. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Gitta believes that, partly due to a shortage of professionals, the field pays far too little\nattention to parents, who, in her view, \u201cdeserve much more positive reinforcement, even\nfrom the state,\u201d considering the difficulties that come with their situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201e\u201cThey carry this burden for decades. It can be eased, but later in life, as the parent retires,\nthey often relive the experience of exclusion: they no longer go to work, they have fewer\ncommunity connections, and because of this, it becomes even harder to let go of their \u2018child.\u2019\u201d<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Continuous learning also plays an important role \u2013 not only for the Youngsters, but for the\nparents as well: \u201cthey reinterpret their role, their love, and the ways in which they can\nsupport, rather than restrict, their adult child.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n If she could start over, Gitta says she would involve parents more deeply in the life of the\nfoundation, in the form of a kind of \u201cschool for parents,\u201d through which she would want \u201cnot\nto raise them, but rather to accompany them.\u201d <\/em><\/strong>\u201d She imagines something \u201cdynamic, alive, and\ngenuinely helpful in processing everyday life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Independence, Responsibility, Diversity<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As the foundation\u2019s operations became more established, \u201cthe world changed as well. In the\n2000s, more and more supported independent living homes were created\u201d<\/em> \u2013 and the Hold My\nHand Foundation was among the first to join this movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The essence of supported housing is that the Youngster can live independently and only\nreceives assistance when needed. This does not mean constant daily supervision, but rather\nsupport that is available at any time. \u201cIt was an enormous step toward independence, but\nalso a difficult one, because the right to make decisions belongs to the Youngster, while the\nultimate responsibility always falls on the helpers.<\/strong> Finding the balance between these two\nthings \u2013 freedom and responsibility \u2013 is one of the greatest challenges in this field.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Alongside the process of becoming independent, Gitta believes that another key to\ndevelopment is helping the Youngster recognize that they are not the only one facing\ndifficulties \u2013 everyone struggles with something. \u201cI also revealed my own weaknesses to\nthem, and together we learned that it is completely normal that we are different. This\nremains the foundation\u2019s philosophy to this day. The goal was always to build on strengths,\nbut without going too far in the other direction: there should be no positive discrimination\neither. The essence is balance and maintaining partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot a Profession, but a Calling\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n By now, the foundation\u2019s team has grown into a close-knit community. They regularly\norganize shared events \u2013 cooking gatherings, excursions, holiday celebrations \u2013 where the\nYoungsters, parents, and professionals can all spend time together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Gitta, it brings great joy that she has remained connected not only to the Youngsters, but\nalso to the foundation\u2019s leadership and staff: \u201csometimes I can still offer them a perspective\nthat helps in their work. I worked here for twenty-seven years, and many things have changed\nsince then, but that is not a problem \u2013 communities usually develop in waves. I always felt\nthat this was not simply a profession, but a calling. I think that is why I was able to stay in it\nfor so many years; because every single day gave me some kind of joy, something new. Even\nwhen it was difficult, I never experienced it as a burden.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n She believes that one of the most important things in this work is learning that \u201cthe role of the\nhelper is not to solve life in place of another person, but to create space for them \u2013 space for\nmistakes, for decisions, for growth.\u201d<\/strong> In her view, development is ultimately made possible\nnot by abilities alone, but by a safe and accepting environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNow, when I look back, I see that what truly matters is human connection.<\/strong> Not the\ninstitution, not the system, but the moment when someone smiles at you, holds your hand, or\nsimply sits beside you and listens. These are the moments that carry people forward. This is\nwhat we always tried to preserve. Even the name \u2018Hold My Hand\u2019 (Fogd A Kezem) was not\naccidental. It does not mean \u2018I will lead you,\u2019 but rather \u2018I am here beside you.\u2019<\/strong> If needed, I\nwill help \u2013 but if you are able to walk on your own, I will let go of your hand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As she recalls memories connected to the foundation\u2019s history, one story comes to mind:\n\u201conce, a Youngster named Gerg\u0151, who barely spoke, came up to me after a week and simply\nsaid: \u2018I like being here.\u2019 And I knew that was enough. No further feedback was needed. That\nis why it is worth doing this.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Hold My Hand Foundation in P\u00e9cs has been supporting adults with intellectual\ndisabilities since 1991. Its goal is to provide assistance that nurtures independence while\nupholding human dignity. Gitta Szvacsekn\u00e9 Jahn explained how this is achieved.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3473,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4673","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n