JOIN US TO KICK OFF THE 2015

NYC WALK4HEARING

 

Wednesday, August 12th

6-8 PM

 

Battery Gardens, Inside Battery Park

 Harbor View Room

Opposite 17 State Street, On the Water  

  

FEATURED SPEAKERS

 

LISA CARLING

Director, Theatre Development Fund

 Accessibility Programs  

 

DAN CARIONE

Deputy Inspector, NYPD

   

RSVP by July 30th

Catherine and Geoffrey Vaughn

nycwalk4hearing@outlook.com 

  

STEP UP TO SUPPORT PEOPLE WITH HEARING LOSS

EXCITING NEWS!

 

Three bills to enhance access to meetings and events in NYC are expected to be introduced in the City Council this September. Your vocal support will help secure their passage into law. Stay tuned for further details. 

 2015 HLAA Convention in St. Louis

 June 24-28
 

 Convention attendees from New York State 

 

Eleven NYC Chapter members were among the 1000+ HLAA members from across the country to attend the Association's 2015 Convention at the Union Station Hotel in St. Louis. This year's event was a rousing success from the opening general session on Thursday, June 25 to the 35th anniversary banquet on Saturday, and closing breakfast on Sunday, June 28.

 

Former Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, a key author and sponsor of the Americans with Disabilities Act, received HLAA's Advocacy Hall of Fame Award and gave a moving address, noting that the fight for our rights continues. The National Access Award was presented to Regal Entertainment for its leadership in providing closed captioning equipment at cinemas nationwide. And comedienne, actress, and motivational speaker Kathy Buckley entertained the banquet audience with her stand-up comedy and moving remarks about overcoming hearing loss.

 

Three-days of breakout sessions featured concurrent tracks on advocacy, assistive and other technology, hearing aids and cochlear implants, and relationships and communication. These, plus an exhibition hall with over 50 exhibitors, from Advanced Bionics to ZPower, provided attendees with a wealth of new and helpful information.

 

Plan now to attend Convention 2016, June 23-26, at the Washington Hilton, Washington, DC.

 

 

In accepting her award--which was presented by chapter board members Ruth Bernstein and Joe Gordon--Lisa said, "Back in 1997, when the Theatre Development Fund introduced open captioning to Broadway, we could not have done it without your voices. So thank you for your advocacy. This is your success story. You are an example to other cities around the country."

 

In introducing Sid, Jerry Bergman, founder and chair of the Hearing Accommodation Task Force of NY, noted that "Sid's legal representation of people with disabilities for almost 50 years mark him as a pioneer in the cause of justice for people with special needs. His nationwide advocacy for closed captioning in cinemas led two of the largest theater chains to make captioning available." Sid accepted his award "on behalf of all the nonprofit and public interest groups that serve people with disabilities, including people with hearing loss."

 

All of the scholarships were given "in recognition of intellectual achievement, service to others, and a positive approach to the challenges of hearing loss." The awards to  Tyler and William were financed by proceeds from the HLAA-NYC Walk for Hearing. Carina's scholarship was a one-time award in memory of Julius and Ruth Fass, long-time school volunteers who died in 2014. The Fasses daughter, Sue Lipkowitz, presented the award to Carina, who commented on her struggles in school, which were alleviated by a Hearing Education Services (HES) program. She concluded by saying, "My goal is to become a nurse. I want to help other children who went through what I went through, and I know I will overcome any challenge that comes my way."

 

            Carina Sanchez, Tyler Aracena, and William Esposito
 

Susan Shapiro, chair of the HLAA-NYC Scholarship Committee, presented the awards to Tyler and William. Tyler, who has been using hearing aids since he was six months old, talked about how he has benefited from assistive technology, including an FM unit, and from an individualized education program (IEP). "To this day," he said, "my guidance counselor and a teacher have made sure that I receive accommodations and continue to thrive in any setting. I've been involved with leadership and community and I'm the editor of my high school yearbook." Tyler will attend Adelphi University and hopes to become a special education teacher.

 

William acknowledged that "hearing loss has presented many challenges to me at home and in school," but like Tyler he praised assistive technology, including FM units and captioning services. He will attend Hunter College and hopes to become a physical therapist. "Taking college-level math and science courses showed me that I can definitely do it," he said, adding, "Over the years I have realized that when I go to college and work I must advocate for myself."

 

LOOPED THEATERS on Broadway!

Hear these musicals through your hearing aids/cochlear implants at the following Nederlander theaters:

Gershwin Theatre

Lunt-Fontanne Theatre

Finding Neverland

Also Looped: