When is No Limits for Deaf Children Day? This day will take place on April 17 of each calendar year.
What is No Limits for Deaf Children Day? There are no limits for deaf children if given the opportunity. This National Day would honor and recognize deaf children throughout the US who have a hearing loss. Oftentimes, children with disabilities are marginalized, not recognized for their successes and achievements. By honoring this vulnerable population, we can shed light on their challenges as well as triumphs. Celebrating 25 years, the nonprofit organization, No Limits for Deaf Children, has been a leader in the field in celebrating these children, giving them the education they need and deserve, as well as embodying the “I Can Do It” spirit. www.nolimitsfordeafchildren.org
Why is this day being celebrated or observed? Deaf children should be heard and celebrating for their triumphs. By bringing awareness to the public, we can make change that will have a ripple impact from the local and national communities to the classrooms. Knowledge is power and this day will be created to bring knowledge that will dispel misconceptions and provide the needed resources and accommodations so that every deaf child can succeed in school and in life. It is essential that change takes place as we have deaf children during the pandemic who did not have captioning for almost 10 months so they could not benefit from instruction. The advancements in technology are outstanding, yet education has not kept up. By bringing this day to the forefront and seeing deaf children as capable and not “less than”, we can make systemic and lifelong changes.
By making it a national holiday, we can remind people every year (every day) the importance of seeing that the future of deaf children has no limits. The day of April 17th has been selected as it was the day No Limits was founded by a teacher of the deaf in her one bedroom apartment where she put all the expenses on her credit card in hopes that deaf children would be heard.
How should this day be celebrated or observed? We believe the day should be celebrated by naming this positive day “No Limits for Deaf Children” as a tribute to the limitless potential of deaf children. The day will bring awareness and facts about hearing loss and serve to break the stigma that is often associated with deafness. Our dream would to be recognized nationally for our efforts as a nonprofit organization with the Founder, Dr. Michelle Christie, a CNN Hero, providing vital information to the public. It would be wonderful to have a Proclamation of this special day as well as a key to the city if possible. It would be observed by having our hundreds of No Limits children share what they can be when they grow up every year. No Limits for Deaf Children can lead the way with a day in its name.
Who created this day? This day was created in February 2021 by No Limits for Deaf Children and Families.