'I can do many things, people with Down syndrome can do it, don't give up.' Diagnosed with Down syndrome when she was four months old, Goh Chok Tong Enable Awards 2023 recipient Jiaying, together with her sister Joyce, talks about her love and dedication in dancing, and her commitment to strive for perfection in performing.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Chia Ying was wanting so persistently that she wanted to work
00:04because she said,
00:05if I don't work, I will be a useless person
00:09and I have to add my age.
00:17Hi, my name is Wong Chia Ying.
00:20I am 32 years old.
00:22I am a founding member of DADC.
00:26I am a DADC divestor.
00:29And also a tour trainer.
00:32I also advocate for work.
00:36She is my elder sister.
00:38She is very smart
00:42and also fully supports me
00:45for any performances.
00:47Hello everyone, I'm Joyce.
00:49I'm Chia Ying's elder sister.
00:51While I can as much as I can,
00:53I support Chia Ying in terms of her
00:55dancing performances as well as her activities
00:59in DADC as well.
01:02My sister was diagnosed with Down's syndrome
01:04when she was four months old.
01:06Since then, my mum has been taking her to specialists
01:11to understand her condition better
01:13and of course, educate us
01:16on how to take care of a kid with Down's syndrome.
01:20We are thankful that Chia Ying's condition
01:24isn't as severe.
01:27We treat her like a sister and nothing less.
01:30So, she goes out with us.
01:32She goes on a trip with us.
01:33She eats with us.
01:35She does a lot of things with us.
01:37In fact, when she was very young,
01:39we noticed that Chia Ying has a good sense of rhythm.
01:42And whenever there's music playing, even on the TV
01:45she will start to come up, stand up and dance like that.
01:49And then, sometimes ask us to follow her.
01:51So...
01:53And then later on, her foundation in dancing
01:57was established when she was studying in Katong Special School.
02:01So since then, she has the opportunity to perform
02:05in various school events, charity events.
02:08She was also selected to be the female lead dancer
02:12for a post-National Day concert
02:15held at the Esplanade twice.
02:17That's where we knew that Chia Ying has the gift of dancing
02:22and she's not afraid of dancing on stage.
02:25I feel very happy.
02:26To dance at the Esplanade, the two-year Esplanade.
02:30Because I can dance, I can teach them.
02:34I feel very fun on the stage to dance.
02:41There are many audiences to watch us dance.
02:46Chia Ying started with Katong Special School
02:48later on to Adult Special School.
02:50Later on, they found her a placement at an internet cafe.
02:53That's actually her first job.
02:55So while working there, it was in fact okay
02:58until a few good years later.
03:01They had a change of management and
03:04we started noticing that the people there
03:08do not really understand how to deal with people with disabilities.
03:15There were times that we experienced that
03:18they suffered from verbal abuse
03:21as well as limited time of rest while they're at the job.
03:27For us, we actually encouraged Chia Ying not to work
03:32because we feel like she doesn't have to suffer
03:38this kind of abuse from the employer.
03:42But Chia Ying was wanting so persistently that she wanted to work
03:47because she said,
03:48If I don't work, I will be a useless person
03:52and I have to add my age.
03:54And we had to respect her decision as an individual.
03:58After she quit her job, we were wanting her to pursue her passion.
04:03So I came across DSA, Dance Industry Association.
04:07So I got her to join Fusion Dance.
04:11So after a few sessions of Fusion Dance,
04:12the instructor actually recommended Chia Ying to join VADC
04:19where they actually focus on the Indian classical dance, Peranakanacham.
04:24So after that, we brought her to meet Kavi,
04:30the director of the Maya dance.
04:32And since then, her journey has been flourishing and doing well.
04:38I feel very happy.
04:40While I was working here, I learned a lot of things.
04:45Also, my boss teaches me a lot of handwork,
04:48paperwork, band testaments, laptop work.
04:51I also do some housekeeping schedule tasks for the colleagues to follow.
04:57I give them the housekeeping schedule tasks.
05:01When he's not sure, he can ask me.
05:05I am the talk trainer.
05:07My main job is to teach the students different types of dance.
05:12Modern dance, Eastern dance, Journey dance, Fusion dance,
05:16contemporary dance, even ballet dance.
05:20I also teach seniors also.
05:22For those seniors who are a bit sick,
05:26I need to give them more encouragement to do some warming up,
05:33dancing, and cool down.
05:36When my grandma is at home, nothing to do,
05:39I teach her basic movements first.
05:42Then, I teach the rest.
05:44I really enjoy teaching seniors.
05:51It's a way for her to have the opportunity to give back to society.
05:56Because elderly people have mobility restrictions,
06:02the movements that they came up with
06:05actually provided them some kind of enjoyment and relaxation.
06:09It's a delight to see that the seniors actually enjoy it.
06:14The elderly follow the movements.
06:17She sometimes just asks,
06:19Grandma, you have nothing to do?
06:20You do this? You do this?
06:22She learns, she is aware, she becomes aware,
06:26and she loves what she's doing right now,
06:29especially what's provided in this DADC space.
06:33I am an HD Anniversary of the Tok Tong Award last year, 2023.
06:39Dominate means it's a return to Island for Maya Indigenous Centre.
06:43My sister and my brother came over to Island
06:46to see me receive this award for the hard work and dance,
06:52more effort, and performance outside.
06:55I'm very happy, I really appreciate it.
06:58I'm very happy with the result this time.
07:00Her dedication in dancing and her commitment to strive for perfection
07:04kind of made her stand out in the team,
07:08and I think she was ready for this nomination.
07:13She is the only one in the family that actually frequents Istana
07:17because of performance.
07:19She had the opportunity to perform in community chess events,
07:24as well as charity events held in Istana.
07:28She's involved in a few productions by Maya Dance as well,
07:33like Body in Motion.
07:36SIDS also, SIDS 2022 and SIDS 2023.
07:42She worked with Hafiz.
07:45The title was called Child Warrior.
07:47He felt Jiayin was very spiritual, very inspiring,
07:52and she doesn't give up.
07:54So, that actually embodies the elements of a child warrior.
08:00And she's baby-faced, that's why also,
08:03that's why that child warrior theme kind of becomes very fitting to her.
08:09I feel you to be proud of me
08:13because parents support me
08:20to do any performances in different places.
08:26This year, July, I go to Australia.
08:30It's my first time going there.
08:34I feel very happy.
08:36I also can, with my parents, also join.
08:40I thought that for performances, for dancing,
08:45and also have the workshop.
08:47When I am working here,
08:50my boss, Luke, asked if I was undone.
08:54So, I'm very happy to dance with my team, the SDC members.
08:58I continue to work, continue dancing,
09:02continue more effort to performing outside different places.
09:07I've done too many things.
09:09Down syndrome, can you eat?
09:11Don't give up.
09:14Well done, yay!