Announcement from The Jewish Deaf Foundation in New York City:
Dear Folks at JDCC News,
I hope this email finds you in good spirits.
It’s been quite a year, with many incidents close to home and further away that have affected the Jewish people as a whole. It’s times like these when community is so important, and your presence makes a difference.
Indeed, in just 3 short weeks from now, we’ll all be gathered together at the Park East Synagogue in Manhattan to celebrate our Jewish Deaf spirit. Together, we will light up the darkness… so brightly that night turns into day!
Preparations are already underway for an even bigger event as we celebrate our 5th anniversary!
Photo: David Michalowski, Jacob Salem and Brett Shaffer.
It was only five years ago that the American Jewish Deaf community was slowly declining. It had been years, decades even, since the community saw a large Jewish Deaf event, despite the fact that there are over 10,000 of us out there. Jewish Deaf club after Jewish Deaf club shuttered its doors.
Then the Jewish Deaf Foundation came into the picture. Already from our very first Chanukah Celebration, we brought together more than 300 people across the city, and continue to serve as the “glue” that sticks together this special group of talented and unique people of all age ranges and backgrounds.
We now have a bright future, and you have yourself to thank for it. Just by being at our programs; just by spreading the word to your family and friends; just by sending donations; just by volunteering… you have made a difference. And what a difference you have made!
By the way, we are quite proud of the program we’ve created for the upcoming event. Honoring us as the emcee of the evening is David Michalowski, from Baltimore, Maryland, and the business owner of DM Multimedia. He looks forward to wowing his eager audience with his humor!
Lighting the shamash candle on the De’VIA Menorah is Jacob Salem, program director of Hillel at Gallaudet University, who is coming to town from Washington, D.C. as our guest of honor. He has lit many flames in the hearts of the Jewish Deaf students over the several years he’s been at Gallaudet, and we are proud to have him lighting yet another one at our program.
Joining us as the entertainment of the evening is Brett Shaffer, who is more well-known as the creator of The Flip Side show on Facebook. With a track record of thousands of likes on his videos and hundreds of thousands of tears shed in laughter, we know he’ll be a fun and entertaining addition to the evening! After eating the delicious buffet dinner, get ready to laugh your calories off!
View Facebook Event Page – jewishdeaffoundation.us10.list-manage.com/track/click?u=8b54841f68ef5df83ee905e6e&id=f5be1a9c60&e=a921f5e837
I would like to express my sincerest gratitude and recognition for the Jewish Deaf Resource Center, a local NYC organization that has worked behind the scenes for many years to provide resources for Jewish Deaf people and built many bridges between the Jewish and Deaf communities. Thank you, Naomi and Alexis, for your continued support, and for believing in the miracle of our community.
Warm appreciations also go to the DHIS – Deaf and Hard of Hearing Interpreting Services – for their continued generous sponsorship of this year’s interpreting services at the Chanukah Celebration. They ensure that the impact of our program goes beyond our typical deaf participants to all the deaf-blind, Russian Sign Language signers, and hearing attendees. At our events, everyone should feel at home, and together with Irma and Joshua and the interpreters of DHIS, we make this a reality year after year. Thank you.
Cheftziba and I can’t wait to see you at the NYC Deaf Chanukah Celebration!
Yours warmly,
Rabbi Yehoshua Soudakoff
Executive Director, the Jewish Deaf Foundation with wife Cheftziba.
Source: The Jewish Deaf Foundation
