Being a parent or family member of a child with developmental difficulties is anything but easy. It becomes even harder if you live in a place where there is no inclusive center of any kind. Only those parents who have lived through it - or live through it daily - truly know what it means to drive for hours just to take their child to an educational or therapy center, and then face, for example, an epileptic seizure along the way. Those who haven't experienced this can hardly grasp the immense strength, energy, patience, and sacrifice such efforts require. So why not try to make everyday life a little easier - or at least try - for those who have been going through this for years?

The association “Be My Friend” is on the right track. For months now, through its campaign supported by the PRAGG project, the association has been actively working to ensure that the Inclusive Center - the first of its kind - is opened in Jablanica. After the Municipality allocated a space for them and included the association in the municipal budget for the current year, setting aside 20,000 KM for the establishment and operation of the Inclusive Center, preparations began for the renovation and equipping of the facility. It’s hard to measure the joy and relief felt by parents and family members, knowing that they will no longer be forced to drive their children with developmental difficulties almost daily from Jablanica to Mostar, Sarajevo, or Konjic. For Senada Bašić, Mondays have been especially difficult for the past 12 years. She and her husband regularly arrange for one of them to stay home from work every Monday so they can take their son, who is on the autism spectrum, to Mostar, where he would stay until Friday. “Opening the Center in Jablanica would be a huge benefit because our child would have something to do every day. Also, the Center is nearby - we wouldn’t be exhausted by long drives. I can’t even describe how much easier that would be, both for parents and for children. We’ve driven in all kinds of weather, and I won’t even go into how we felt every time we dropped Irhad off in Mostar on Mondays and went to pick him up on Fridays. Your heart skips a beat every time the phone rings. You wonder what’s happened, and since he has epileptic seizures, we’re constantly under stress and in a state of uncertainty, thinking whether something has gone wrong. But once the Center opens, everything will be close. Even if something does happen, you’re just a minute or two away - it would make everything so much easier”, explains Senada Bašić.

One of the biggest challenges faced by many families of children with developmental difficulties is the inability to work, as at least one parent must spend the entire day caring for the child. As a result, many parents lose their jobs, which further worsens their financial situation. Sumeja Husrep has a teenage brother on the autism spectrum. Although still very young, Sumeja understands all too well the difficulties that parents - and families as a whole - go through when they have a child with disabilities. She is fully aware of how much the opening of an Inclusive Center in her community would ease her family's life: "The realization of this idea and the opening of the Center in Jablanica would mean a lot to my mother and me. During those few hours that my brother would spend at the Center, the two of us could work and earn an income, while my brother would be surrounded by professionals and would be happier - as would we, and the entire community”.

What’s encouraging is that parents and members of the association “Be My Friend” are receiving regular and ongoing public support from numerous allies and public figures from various walks of life. One of those supporters is actor Mario Drmać, who shared the following message: "As an actor - a person from the world of culture that breaks down barriers between people, challenges prejudices, and promotes good ideas - I want to lend my support to positive initiatives. In this case, it’s the activities of the association ‘Be My Friend’ from Jablanica. This is an association that supports children with developmental difficulties and is working to open the first Inclusive Center in the town as soon as possible. Together, through inclusion, we can achieve a great deal".

It’s not uncommon for various companies and businesses to offer their support - even in the form of financial contributions or building materials. In addition to these generous acts from kind-hearted individuals, a humanitarian phone line has also been activated: 090 292 012, through which anyone willing can donate 3 KM. Standing alongside the “Be My Friend” Association from the very beginning of this initiative is the Voluntary Blood Donors Society of the Neretva Hydroelectric Plant in Jablanica. Their representative, Miralem Macić, emphasizes that their support will not stop: "I hope that the users of this Center, through professional workshops and education, and by working with speech therapists and psychologists, will receive proper support and education - and in doing so, help ease the burden their families face".

And that is precisely the goal of opening the Inclusive Center - to ensure that children with developmental difficulties have daily access to work with professional staff such as speech therapists, special education teachers, and psychologists who will support their development, progress, and social interaction. At the same time, parents and other family members will finally have the opportunity to attend to responsibilities and activities they were previously unable to fulfill.