14 - The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday February 9, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Fundraiser gives hearing-impaired children a VOICE By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF A parental support organization that has helped hundreds of deaf and hearingimpaired children across Canada is looking for the public's help in allowing its essential work to continue. VOICE For Hearing Impaired Children is holding its fifth annual Valentine's Day Dance on Saturday, Feb. 16 at the Burlington Convention Centre, located at 1120 Burloak Dr. in Burlington. The dance/fundraiser will raise money that will be put towards the VOICE mission, which is to ensure that all hearingimpaired children have the right to develop their ability to listen, speak and have access to services, which will enable to achieve these goals. The group was founded more than 40 years ago by parents who wanted their hearing-impaired children to be educated in regular schools. Working collectively to make this dream a reality, the group also found that it was of great benefit to share their childraising experiences and to support each other. VOICE member Mary Kay McCoy, who works in Oakville, talked about her own experiences with VOICE. "Five years ago, when my son was diagnosed as being deaf, we were told about this group of parents we could call on for support," said McCoy. "The majority of us are hearing parents with deaf children, so we get together to discuss the trials and tribulations of raising deaf children." Besides the support aspect of VOICE, McCoy noted that there is also an educational aspect, which teaches deaf children communications skills through audio/verbal therapy. "My son could have learned sign language, but we got him a cochlear implant (a device that helps provide a sense of sound for a deaf or hearing-impaired person) instead," said McCoy. "Then we taught him to talk through audio/verbal therapy, which involves the "The majority of us are hearing parents with deaf children, so we get together to discuss the trials and tribulations of raising deaf children." VOCIE member Mary Kay McCoy reinforcement of speech through pictures and sound. Now my son is in a regular school and he is talking more every day. That's what VOICE is all about." From VOICE's humble beginnings in Toronto, the group has grown to the point where it now maintains about 1,000 members in 14 chapters within Ontario, including the Halton/Hamilton/Niagara/Peel Chapter, and four associate chapters in Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec and Newfoundland. The Halton/Hamilton/Niagara/Peel chapter of VOICE alone is currently funding therapy for more than 30 children. However, continuing this work costs money, which is why VOICE's Valentine's Day Dance is so important. "Part of the money from this dance is going towards a library that we have," said McCoy. "To teach children audio/verbal therapy, we need certain things to help them. For example, if we're teaching them about farms, we could get a box from this library that has model farm animals in it and the different buildings you would find on a farm. We can sign these things out of the library, which is good because after we teach our child about these it's off to the next thing." The money will also fund the purchase of other educational tools and different aspects of the audio/verbal therapy. The doors to the Burlington Convention Centre will open at 6 p.m. with the dinner beginning at 7 p.m. Tickets are $50 each to get into the dance, which will also feature a silent auction and a live auction where those present will get a chance to bid on such treasures as spa packages, paintings and artwork, gift certificates for $1,000 off flooring and more. McCoy noted that, besides the cost of the hall, 100 per cent of the money donated will go to VOICE. "VOICE has been my lifeline. A lot of times with children you're thinking, `Why is my child doing this or that,' and you don't know if they're doing it because they're hearing impaired or because they're just normal kids. You go and you talk to these other parents and you realize that you are not alone. That they are going through the same problems," said McCoy. "They just really guide you." Anyone interested in learning more or making a donation to VOICE can call McCoy at 905 4860211. Oakville Art Society offers March Break Program For the first time this year, the Oakville Art Society (OAS) is offering a week-long March Break Program for kids seven to 13 years of age. The program is designed to help timestrapped parents with an organized schedule over the school break period. Classes will run March 10-14 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with a special provision for early drop off and late pickup available. For more information visit www.oakvilleartsociety.com. 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