President's Corner

Association of Late-Deafened Adults-Garden State

                              PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Greetings ALDA-GS,

      As we start a new year I would like to thank the board members who served with me and helped make 2008 a banne year for our chapter.

      Sheila Shuford, our Past-President, is heading the 2009 Nomination Committee and will be sending ballots to the membership to elect the new board. Please look for your ballot in your E-mail and/or snail mail and respond accordingly. Every member’s voice should be heard.

The workshop held on December 6, 2008 was very interesting. All who     attended found the topics both timely and informative. During the morning session, Mr. Jeffrey Newman—Deputy Clerk for the New Jersey Appellate Court— shared his expertise about court access for individuals with hearing loss. Mr. Newman demonstrated the infrared Assistive Listening Device from Sound Choice that the courts use (www.assistivelistening.net) as well as the Interpretype keyboard  (www.interpretype.com).

Our second speaker was from PhoneTag, a service that transcribes voice messages into text or E-mail. ALDA-GS members are being offered a “special 30-day risk-free trial of PhoneTag.” To sign up, visit https://apps.simulscribe.com/signup/a/ALDA. If you decide to subscribe, you will be eligible to participate in their referral program which provides an additional 30 days of free service for each new customer that you introduce to PhoneTag.

Individuals affected by hearing loss have seen great progress being made here in New Jersey by the passing of Grace’s Law, through the tenacious efforts of Jeanine and Grace Gleba and a host of advocates and supporters across the state. Kudos to our members who attended the hearings and helped prove there is strength in numbers. For more information about Grace’s Law, visit www.graceslaw.com.

Please mark your calendars for Saturday, April 25, 2009, 9 A.M.—1 P.M. Our Spring Workshop/Annual Birthday Party will be held in a new location. The board has selected Morris County Public Library as the site of our workshop on Travel and our own Cynthia Ammerman will be our presenter. Cleverly named,  “ALDA Travelers: Tips for the Trips,” the workshop promises to be one not to be missed.

ALDAcon 2009 will be held in Seattle Washington October 14—18 at the Doubletree Seattle Airport. For more information visit www.alda.org.

We are looking forward to an even bigger year for our chapter and ask all of our members, families, friends and associates to help us by attending our events and inviting new faces to come and learn more about ALDA-GS.  The board is working very hard to create new partnerships and increase ALDAwareness. Remember, when ALDA members get together, communication barriers disappear. Our philosophy is Whatever works, works!                                                                                                                                          

Blessings,

Lynn                  

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Last modified: 06/19/2009