January 2009
Hello D.C. Citizens and Friends of DCAD!
I hope all of you are off to a good start in 2009 after a wonderful holiday break.
It is now 2009 and a new year begins. Not only are we excited about President Obama taking the helm and beginning to lead America back to prosperity as of last week, we are also excited that there has been a resurgence of the District of Columbia Association of the Deaf (DCAD) that began early last year. DCAD was able to accomplish this with the help of key talented people who have made a positive impact since they joined this organization.
One of these talented individuals is our Vice President, Alexander Zernovoj, who has been extremely instrumental in creating and launching our one signature event: our annual ASL Film Festival. Zernovoj is the director and event chairperson of our 2nd Film Festival to take place on May 1 and 2, 2009. “We are very excited about our 2nd ASL Film Festival programming. We have used the success of last year’s event and have now grown into a bigger event with schedule that is filling up fast with exciting films,” said Zernovoj.
Zernovoj’s responsibilities also include implementing an effective public relations team responsible for reviewing, communicating and advancing information regarding DCAD activities and advocacy efforts for the D.C. Deaf community that we serve. Additionally, Zernovoj has helped develop a strong network between DCAD and Gallaudet University and this provided DCAD access to a large base of student volunteers.
Another talented new member is Erin Land. Land joined us last year as our Secretary as well as our State Pageant Director. Land ensured that our Miss Deaf DC/Gallaudet was a participant in the Miss Deaf America Pageant at the 49th NAD Conference this past summer. Lisa Montalvo is another fine volunteer who joined us late in the year. Montalvo is currently collecting, preserving and archiving our recently found old paperwork and documents. Her goal is to protect the documented history of DCAD. We have one volunteer, Beverly Buchanan, who is now reviewing a list of all past DCAD members and will be updating our Membership Database. Janie Golightly and Lois Hoover are our long-time board members who witnessed and gave big helping hands to various activities and projects during our resurgence.
While I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of these outstanding people and other volunteers that have done a lot for this organization, we are looking for more committed people to join DCAD and to volunteer their creativity and skills in ways that best serve our community. We have a lot of ideas, but we need YOU to be a part of our team to help make these ideas happen. Please contact us if you are interested in joining and volunteering for us.
We are planning to implement many major events and projects this year. For instances, as mentioned above, DCAD is planning on to host our 2nd Annual Film Festival and this Is in addition to the Spring Wine & Cheese Party scheduled to occur sometime before the film festival. DCAD volunteers are also working on putting together a VRS and VP Expo that is tentatively planned for this spring.
One of DCAD’s major platforms is our continuing work to foster youth involvement in advocating on behalf of our community. With this in mind we will be hosting a series of informal meetings with Gallaudet SBG to discuss, revise and renew the DCAD/SBG Membership Agreement. As well, we have helped, and made innumerous referrals to appropriate services for, some D.C. citizens who request it, DCAD is reviewing and improving various aspects of its capability to provide information and resources for those who need it.
I would like to share with you a recap of a few of the activities we did last year. (We plan to post our Quarterly Report on our website shortly.)
In December 2008, DCAD…
… co-hosted with Viable, a Holiday Wine & Cheese Event, that promoted both organizations’ services.
… staffed an informational booth at Gallaudet University’s Holiday/Winter Bazaar that educated the public about DCAD’s services and advocacy efforts.
… donated food to Deaf Reach’s Otis House for their Christmas Dinner.
… donated a wine basket to USADF New Year’s Eve Gala.
In October 2008, DCAD…
… hosted an All Hallow’s Eve Costume Ball at Gallaudet’s “Ole Jim.”
In September 2008, DCAD…
… hosted a Fall Wine & Cheese Party at Gallauedt’s “Ole Jim.”
Earlier in 2008, DCAD…
… established and hosted our 1st Annual ASL Film Festival in March 2008. Part of the proceeds went to USADSF to support U.S. Deaf athletes’ participation in the 2009 Deaflympics.
… co-hosted, with Gallaudet University and Gallaudet SBG, a Town Hall meeting in June that discussed the series of house break-ins in the area around the campus and provided information on what D.C. residents can do to safeguard themselves. Click here for DCAD statement.
… sent six delegates to the 49th NAD Conference in July.
… sent Miss DCAD/Gallaudet to the Miss Deaf America Pageant.
… worked with the D.C. Council on advocating for the creation of an Interpreting Fund designed to provide interpreting services for deaf citizens visiting a D.C. government agency. Click here for DCAD statement.
… released a statement supporting a free smoke alarm system for District of Columbia Deaf/Hard of Hearing people at a press conference with the DC Fire Department that was set up by the Gallaudet Communications Department. Click here for DCAD statement.
… updated our website to streamline information to improve the ease of use of our website.
… created draft procedural guidelines and organizational kits to improve our organization operation’s efficiency.
… recruited talented Individuals to key organizational positions and built more partnerships with local businesses and organizations to help further the causes of DCAD and our Deaf community.
I am grateful for all the hard work and dedication of our outstanding team of volunteers that has made DCAD the way it is today. Our work is not finished – this is the beginning of a new “DCAD”.
I look forward to an exciting new year with many more great advocacy achievements for the D.C. Deaf community. Please help us by either joining us or making a contribution to DCAD (click here). Your donations, talent and time used for our community causes will be very welcome!
Deafly yours,
David J. Nelson, President
District of Columbia Association of the Deaf