Greater Voice Project Report
Partners for A Greater Voice; Director's Report
By Joanne Travers
Mar 22, 2004, 11:30

Preparing a New Generation of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children in developing countries

In-country Planning and Assessment

The Dominican Republic kept us busy in the last year, with two trips that covered initiatives focused in the field of auditory-oral/verbal education.  The year ended with the completion of a United States based training program for eight qualified educators from the Dominican Republic, vested in working with deaf and hard of hearing children. As the founder and director of the organization, I felt it necessary to build a model that demonstrates what our organization’s capacity holds.  Choosing the Dominican Republic as our first country to invest in was a good decision for many reasons. 

Collaborating with Others

Through Rotary, we connected with Audiologists who frequented the island on missions.  Rotarian Laura Dennison from Atlanta had been working on the island for over five years with some support from Roger Fagan in Maine.  We had also met Roy Davis, from Gloucester, who introduced us to people in the community of Boca Chica as well as many Dominicans living in communities here in Massachusetts.  A week before our first trip, we met Orlando Vargas, another Rotarian and project coordinator for Por Cristo, who connected us with the Presidential Cabinet of the Cabinet of Social Reform in the Dominican Republic.  Through these wonderful Rotary connections, we assess all levels of society and gain valuable perspective.  We are thankful for their support.  

In-country Projects

Partners for A Greater Voice visited 5 schools for the deaf, met with over 100 parents and teachers and administrators, and initiated discussions with Special Education officials.  We met one-on-one with over 25 families, provided an afternoon workshop for 25-30 rehabilitation workers, and determined the level of interest in auditory-oral/verbal communication.  As a result, we discovered there was an incredible desire to teach spoken language to hard of hearing children.   As well, audiometric equipment was sourced and delivered, along with school supplies and oral deaf education parent information materials.  Other donated gift items, such as toys, stickers, crayons and stuffed animals were given to over 100 children that we met.  We continue to send school supplies down to the island each year.

Give the Gift of Hearing

In the summer of 2003, Partners for A Greater Voice decided to start a Give the Gift of Hearing program, which supports poor children in need of a hearing aid.  For $150, a new hearing aid and ear mold are given to a poor child who cannot afford to purchase one.  Hearing aids are not just handed to anyone.  Our organization, in collaboration with schools in San Pedro de Macoris and Santo Domingo, ensures that the child is enrolled in a school with proper educa- tional support to develop his/her spoken language, has access to audiological services, and parents are given appropriate instruction.  Since September, we have sponsored 12 children.

This effort is not possible without Instituto Ayuda al Sordo a Santa Rosa in Santo Domingo, a school for the deaf in the capital city of Dominican Republic.   We are excited to have this collabor-ation, in which we can foster the growth of education and technology, while empowering the local community to develop new and prosperous programs for parents, children and teachers.

U.S. Based Training Program

Recently, eight qualified people from the country participated in an intensive U.S. training program sponsored by Partners for A Greater Voice.  We developed, coordinated and sponsored this 18-day training program to build skills, experiences and a vision for a new generation of deaf and hard of hearing children.  Five teachers, one audiology technician, a parent and Greater Voice’s in-country coordinator participated in this professional development program which ran every day beginning some days at 7:30am and ending some nights at 8:00pm.  The training embraced classroom lectures, project development and meetings/discussions with over 35 professionals from nearly 20 leading organizations serving deaf and hard of hearing people.  This collaborative effort made a tremendous impact on the participant’s vision of their students and their expectations of people who live with hearing loss and can speak.

We are so very thankful to all those who graciously opened their doors to support this initiative.  The participants were also grateful for this experience, which provided a whole new perspective.  Yadixa Messina, a teacher of the deaf for over 20 years, stated, “We have good programs, but now I rally understand what technology and parent support really means.”  Parent involvement and Universal Newborn Hearing Screening projects are two examples of what surprised the Dominicans most.  The participants are eager to initiate these projects in their country. 

Looking Forward

Greater Voice will continue to support these individuals and the institutions we have built a relationship with in the Dominican Republic.  Through much needed fund raising efforts, we will strive to meet the need for technology and training.  In 2004, we will follow up on the progress of work in the Dominican Republic, while we look to assess a new developing economy and offer our support. 

We are very happy to announce the Topsfield/Boxford /Middleton Rotary Club will raise money to support a school for the deaf in San Pedro de Macoris.  With the support from the Rotary Club of San Pedro de Macoris, the San Pedro Fire Department, Orlando Vargas (Rotarian), and CAES (the school for the deaf in San Pedro), we hope the project is completed by early 2005! 

Additionally, we are seeking support to help a small community in Boca Chica where we have identfied over 25 families with deaf and hard of hearing children. Public schools will not enroll these children since teachers are not trained to deal with their disabilty.  As a result of our fall training program, two participants are now instituting a Learning Center to help reach out to the comunity, offering to train parents and provide basic audiotry training to the children.  Our proposal supports the development of this eduational center and we are in need of support to get hearing aids on these children.

Our board of directors will determine our next steps as we continue with 2004 and enter 2005.  Importantly, we are planning how Partners for A Greater Voice can provide the biggest impact with the limited resources we have.

We want to thank all of you for your contributions.  We are very excited about our future and need as much support as possible.  Below lists ways you can continue to help us.    Thank you for caring to make the world a bigger place for a deaf or hard of hearing childã. 

Thank you,   Joanne Travers 

Ways You Can Help:

-          Donate analog hearing aids (BTEs)

-          Offer your writing skills to reach foundations, corporations and grantors

-          Participate in fund-raising activities

-          Contribute $150 to Give the Gift of Hearing to support a child

-          Run local drive to gather school supplies

-          Visit www.impactauction.org (a non-profit on-line venture to aid charitable organizations).  Bid on items offered by Partners for A Greater Voice; auction runs every month.

-          Donate items for auction at  www.impactauction.org

-          Visit our website at www.greatervoice.com

-          Consider making one of the following tax deductible contributions:

4$10-49 Donor

4$50-$124 Friend

4$125-$249 Partner

4$250-$499 Sponsor

4$500 + Senior Sponsor

Board of Director Information:

Welcome new members Barb Manning, Heidi Hardie and James O’Donnell.  Heidi brings great enthusiasm and support to our mission of helping deaf and hard of hearing children.  She is currently an assistant teacher in the public school system.  Jim is an attorney and is oral deaf.  He was former Deputy Director at the Mass Commission for the Deaf in Boston.  He is also an advocate for families needing special education assistance and teaches English in Chelsea public schools.  We also welcome Barbara Manning.  She is a parent of an oral-deaf adult.  Barbara is the Director of Parent Information Services at Clarke School for the Deaf in Northampton. She also runs professional institutes in the summer. We are very happy to have them aboard!