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DONATIONS NEEDED for BDHHS Annual Fundraising Picnic!   We are asking you to please consider donating merchandise, a gift certificate or a  monetary donation to our Annual Fundraising Event; any size donation would be greatly appreciated. Donations will be used for our Concession Stand, Silent Auction or to Sponsor our Fundraiser. Ultimately, all donations will help us to better serve the community and you.  Donations can be dropped off during regular business hours, mailed to BDHHS  or contact Kandy at BDHHS if you need your donation to be picked up.      VOLUNTEERS NEEDED for our Sixth Annual Fundraising Picnic! Saturday, June 7, 2008 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Picnic is from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.)   Various jobs include, but not limited to: SETUP, CLEANUP, Registration Table, Kitchen Help, and Games  Whether you can help for 2-hours or all day, please contact Cindy AT BDHHS.   BDHHS WILL BE CLOSED ON MONDAY, MAY 26, 2008  IN HONOR OF MEMORIAL DAY!       OUR MISSION STATEMENT The mission of Berks Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services is to provide services, resources, and social opportunities to and education and advocacy for the deaf, hard of hearing and hearing individuals in Berks and surrounding counties. Vision Statement In 2005, as the leadership of Berks Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services begins its planning activities; it has created the following vision of the outcomes of its efforts. We are the premier organization serving the deaf, hard of hearing and hearing individuals within Berks and surrounding counties. Because we are highly visible and well known in our communities, people are fully aware of our services. Because we are highly accessible, people feel comfortable approaching us to receive those services. As importantly, businesses in our service area understand their responsibilities to the deaf and hard of hearing and our ability to help them meet those responsibilities. We operate with unbending integrity and professionalism and consider ourselves to be genuinely accountable to our clients and our colleagues. Our board and staff function as one team focused on common goals. Our employees are competitively compensated and empowered to be the best they can be. We have a building that meets our programmatic and operational needs and we have the support equipment and hearing screening unit we need to serve our community. As a result of our strategic focus and hard work, we are financially strong. We operate on a budget of more than $1 million and generate a yearly surplus. This surplus enables us to maintain a healthy fund balance and ensures our ability to fulfill our mission for future generations. Back to top

Berks Deaf & Hard of Hearing Services Brief History In 1964, Mrs. Margaret Danowski learned that her six-year old daughter had hearing loss. This knowledge had a tremendous emotional impact upon her and her husband, mixed with   self-blame, self-pity, and the realization that this was really happening to their child, and not to someone else's child. Berks Deaf & Hard of Hearing Services had its start, thanks to Mrs. Danowski and local Audiologist Dr. Grabowski, at a meeting held in March 1967, for parents  of (or professionals working with) children with speech and hearing problems. In May 1968, the organization was incorporated as a Non-Profit Agency, known as The Berks County Association for the Hearing Impaired, Inc., later to be known as Berks Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services. The group's first project was to open a pre-school for Deaf children. This occurred in September 1968, at the First Presbyterian Church in Reading, PA. The agency has grown over the years, and now has seven full time and one part time employees, and has fully expanded services for Deaf and Hard of Hearing members of the community. Back to top