From left: Commissioner Rolando Wilson, Janice and Glenroy Massiah, Bobby Zagers and Eviton Heyliger in the new bathroom that was built as an addition to the family’s home in St. John’s.
SABA--Janice Massiah, who is bound to a wheelchair, is extremely happy with her new bathroom which is fully adapted to her situation.
“This is my palace. I feel so good,” she said during a visit of Commissioner Rolando Wilson, Head of the Planning Bureau Boddy Zagers and Eviton Heyliger of Own Your Own Home Foundation (OYOHF) on Friday, January 29.
Janice, who is a nurse by profession, had no suitable bathroom in her house in St. John’s. Her urgent situation made her a good candidate for a pilot project funded by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour SZW and the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sport VWS as part of the larger endeavour to implement in Saba the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. OYOHF contributed to the pilot project, under the Planning Bureau’s supervision.
To construct the new bathroom, Janice’s husband Glenroy Massiah, who won the contract, added a piece to the house and constructed a cesspit. “It is specialist work. You need to know exactly what the person needs,” said Glenroy, who did a lot of research before starting construction so Janice would have a perfect bathroom that fully suits her needs.
The bathroom needed to be accessible with a full turning radius of Janice’s wheelchair, have a wheelchair accessible shower with a special seat, and a senior toilet with adjustable handles on the wall. Janice said she was “very, very, very happy” with her new bathroom. “I feel more comfortable, more at ease.”
Commissioner Wilson explained that Janice was the first person to be assisted as part of the pilot project. “The pilot project went very well, and I have to say that the result is beautiful. I am very happy for her. This makes things much more comfortable for her,” he said.
More persons with challenges, mostly seniors, will be assisted with adaptations to their homes in the near future. Some 20 more persons have requested assistance. With the available funding, the public entity Saba will continue to assist persons that require adaptations to their homes.
Janice said she hoped that more people can be assisted. “It is badly needed for other people too. Many persons with challenges out there need it.”
She said that in general, it would be good to have more wheelchair-accessible buildings in Saba, which would make it easier for her to go grocery shopping or visit a restaurant.
