Jason’s Joy

JASON Maitland, described as ‘the gentlemen of gentlemen’ by his fellow class mates received some of the best news on Tuesday morning when he found out he had passed his Matric IEB exams.

This was no small feat for Jason, now 20 years old.

As a young child Jason was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome, also known as Asperger disorder, which is characterised by significant difficulties in social interaction and non-verbal communication, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behaviour and interests.

This however did not stop Jason and after a few years at Zululand Remedial School he was accepted into Grade 6 at Felixton College.

Jason’s time at Felixton College was not only spent in the classroom but also outdoors.

He was the school’s swimming team manager and handled a lot of the admin work.

‘He was a part of the team and without him we just would not have functioned properly,’ a fellow schoolmate explained.

Although Jason admits there were bumps along the way and it took a lot of hard work and encouragement from his family and friends, this part of his journey has been completed.

‘My brother and I have both finished high school at the same time’ an elated Jason explained.

‘Neither one of us will forget this day’.

Jason as well as a number of Felixton College matrics made their way to the school on Tuesday morning where they received their results.

‘I am just so delighted for all our matric pupils as we received a 100% pass rate this year but for Jason and his family I am over the moon,’ said Debbie Lane, Marketing and Admissions Officer at Felixton College.

Jason has applied to various animation design institutions and is hoping to hear from them in the new year.