The humble story of how Myhorizon first began is an inspirational one, where a group of dedicated parents were united by a common purpo
se – creating a better life for people with disability through education, employment, and community connection opportunities.
One of those dedicated founding parents was Rita Morris who says that back in 1981, there weren’t any local groups in the Redlands who could provide the support and opportunities that she wanted for her son Christopher, and so decided that together with like-minded parents would create their own organisation.
Rita speaks gratefully about Myhorizon for the support they have given her son Christopher over the years and wanted to return some of the support and generosity. So earlier this year, the idea of ‘Rita’s cart’ was born. Having a space at the new Myhorizon Community Centre at Capalaba where Rita could sell her goods to patrons of the Bush Café, staff, and general public visiting the centre, meant that she could donate her profits back to the organisation, specifically to the Early Intervention programs offered at Myhorizon.
“I’ll never be able to pay back Myhorizon for what they have done for Christopher over the years. This is my small way to give something back to the organisation” said Rita.
The design and construction of Rita’s Cart was kindly built by the wonderful members of Alexandra Hills Men’s Shed, who donated their time and materials to build Rita a custom made cart to sell her treasures. When approached to take on this project, long-time Men’s Shed member Damian Malone, was more than happy to contribute with the help of his fellow members, as he had a personal connection to Myhorizon.
“I decided to take on this project at Myhorizon because they previously provided my son and my family with a lot of support and information we needed through their Baby Bridges program. We wanted to do something to give back.”
Myhorizon presented Alexandra Hills Men’s Shed with a certificate of appreciation recently for their kind contribution to the construction of the cart which they completed in June 2017. Since opening the cart, Rita has sold many handmade pieces and novelties and already raised $1000 to donate back to Myhorizon.
Rita’s generous ongoing donations to Myhorizon’s Early Intervention Service contributes to important programs for children with development delay or disability, giving them more learning opportunities and supports they need to reach their potential.
“In the early days, there weren’t any programs around to support kids who had a disability, but now with more funding and help available, there is more opportunity for children with a disability to get the support they need from programs like the ones offered by the Early Intervention team at Myhorizon” said Rita.
You can find Rita’s Cart at Myhorizon Community Centre, Runnymede Rd, Capalaba, where you can browse her selection of handmade items, novelties, and children’s clothing, open 8.30am till 4.30pm Monday to Friday.
(Photo: Alexandra Hills Men’s Shed members Damien Malone, Les Burrell, and Michael Gleeson accepting their Certificate of Appreciation from Myhorizon; and Manager of ‘Rita’s Cart’ – Rita Morris)
