Young Achievers

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We want to give two Indian Deaf children and their Deaf teacher the chance to attend World Federation of the Deaf Youth Section (WFDYS) Children's camp in Washington DC in August 2014. This will be the first time that Deaf children from India will have the opportunity to attend such a camp. Let's make history together!

[The Young Achievers logo, an abstract image of a person reaching toward something in the sky, appears in the center of the screen]

[The Young Achievers logo now appears in the upper left-hand corner of the screen and remains there through the duration of the video. An Indian man in his late 20's to early 30's appears on the screen with a blue shirt, sleeves rolled up just above his elbows, and he is wearing a large watch on his left wrist. Text appears on the screen describing the man as Bilal Chinoy; Founder, Young Achievers. Bilal begins signing passionately.]

Imagine the young Deaf child in India, born with the desire to reach for the stars and climb the mountain of life. But before these children can even walk, they are confronted with barriers to the climb, when they are born into a family that doesn't use sign language. Then they go to school, hopeful when they see other students that they will be given that boost they need, and are again thwarted when their teacher doesn't sign and no interpreter is provided. They are even more discouraged when they find that their classmates can't communicate effectively with them and they have no partner with whom to climb. Even when they seek support through technology, media is frequently not captioned. To cap it off, when they try to seek employment, they are faced with so much discrimination that they do not have a leg left to stand on.

Deaf children may be tempted to leave the mountain and enter a cave of darkness and isolation; until they spot a bright light, a shining star. This ray of hope they see comes from Gallaudet. At Gallaudet, everyone signs, everyone understands their experiences as Deaf people. Gallaudet provides a one-of-a-kind academic and social environment that allows Deaf people to get a strong grasp on their identities. With this newfound support, Deaf people may make their journey easily, and the mountain may instead become a ladder one can climb, a ladder to personal success.

When we Deaf people have opportunities like this, and we see other Deaf children alone and struggling at the bottom of their mountains, should we abandon them?

No! We need to do everything in our power to support Deaf children in making the climb.
And this is where Young Achievers comes in.

[An Indian woman appears on the screen, in her mid 20's in a green shirt with sleeves just past her elbows. She is wearing glasses and her nose is pierced on her right nostril, indicating her heritage. Text appears on the screen identifying her as Arathy Manoharan; Founder, Young Achievers. She begins signing cheerfully.]

The Young Achievers team seeks to encourage the use of bilingual education for Deaf children in India. There are relatively few signing, bilingual schools in India; however, our team has found a bilingual school with whom to collaborate, BIL,

[World Map Shown, Zooms in to India] BIL, The Bajaj Institute of Learning located in Dehradun, India.

We know that Deaf children learn best from the opportunity to interact with peers and role models. There is a perfect opportunity coming soon for just that type of experience!

From August 1st through 8th,, a camp will be hosted to advance Deaf children and their Deaf teachers' learning and leadership skills. The camp is being cosponsored by the World Federation of the Deaf Youth Section (WFDYS), Deaf Youth USA (DYUSA), and Gallaudet University!

We are hoping to facilitate the attendance of a Deaf teacher and two Deaf children from India at this amazing camp.
In order to do so though, we need your support!

[Bilal again appears on the screen, signing enthusiastically. To his left is listed 20 Days. To his right is listed: Funding Goal- $7,000. Flight Tickets, $3,600. Camp Registration Fees, $450. Passport & US Visa Fees, $630. Domestic Transportation, Food, & Related Expenses, $2,320.]

Our goal is to fundraise $7,000. This will include the cost of the flights, camp registration fees, passport and visa costs, as well as domestic transportation, food, and related expenses. The $7,000 is to completely fund their 20-day stay, and our goal is for them to have all of their needs met!

Thank you in advance for your support!
To donate and for more information, please visit:
http://www.yaindia.com or
http://www.youcaring.com/other/send-d...