Celebrations all Around

Hi All, Yes its that time of the year where the Deaf community is buzzing with excitement, activities and lots of planning. Its September and its a WEEK LONG Celebration. We Celebrate being DEAF! Proud of being Deaf, Proud of the Deaf Culture, Sign Language and our unique experiences. Across the globe and in India a lot of activities are planned around this time of the Year. The theme this year is " Equality for Deaf". Following this theme associations for the Deaf have planned various novel ways to discuss Equality. Yuva Association for the Deaf in Mumbai were creative and got the Deaf population of Mumbai to travel in the local train from one end of the city to Churchgate. Many Deaf participated and the Mumbai hearing community got to see the huge number of Deaf in Mumbai. It was fun and the Deaf got themselves visible. Indian Deaf Youth Forum in New Delhi planned a 3 days event to Celebrate International Week of Deaf. Awareness for Hearing people at DLF Place Mall Saket, Women Awareness Talk for Deaf Women & finally the Grand Finale with Presentations, Dance Drama and songs in Indian Sign Language. Every Deaf association is working towards creating awareness about Sign Language, Deafness and the Deaf Culture. So its time to create Awareness, have fun and unite as one big Deaf Family! :-)

Generous Contributions

Something that made me smile and feel very warm and happy yesterday.

A lot of Deaf attend the LEED Pune sessions every Sunday. All from different walks of life, different backgrounds and different attitudes. But I realize each one is a gem.

We all contribute towards LEED Pune in every way we can, mostly its our time and effort. We purchase stuff for the class and do what we can to help it float.

This Sunday LEED Pune got a very sweet contribution from one of the students. A big box of chalk and a duster. I know it does not sound too big a contribution but its the thought that came with it.

This dear deaf individual

Deaf Youth Federation Lecture

The best way to learn something more is to invite people with more experience and knowledge. We were lucky that Deaf Youth Empowerment Leader , Mr Mohd Shafique was visiting friends in town and he proposed a short interaction with LEED Pune team [ members, volunteers, students].

Excited to have the most promising Deaf Youth Leader share his knowledge with us was electrifying. we all got into action found ourselves the place, sent out text messages and were set.

A wonderful insight into what Deaf Youth Empowerment is all about by Mr Mohd. Shafique. He shared his experience travelling across India Empowering Deaf Youth.

The importance of Unity among the Deaf, avoiding gossip, getting out of the blame-game, were the topics of discussion.

Mr Mohd Shafique has a wonderful knack of blending humor with a message. All in all it was an eye opener for all at LEED Pune.

Thank you Mohd Shafique sir, for your wonderful lecture.

Cheers

Outdoor Fun for LEED Pune

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

We didnt want to be dull so LEED Pune team decided to go out for some fun.

Mahabaleshwar - it was, strawberries, boat rides, good food, trekking, horror house experience & loads loads of fun...

Now we are gearing up for one more fun filled day..

Keep watching the space for more pics and news on the fun activities at LEED Pune.

Atsy

Marriages at LEED Pune

Well, its good news for us at LEED Pune; a good time for celebration. Two of our members got married and we at LEED Pune wish them "Good Luck for a very Happy & Prosperous Wedded Life" .

May we have more moments to celebrate.

Atsy.

We saw it there......

Yes, That is how our LEED Pune students react when they come across a word in English.

In the initial stages Deaf Youth from Pune didn't have a very good vocabulary bank. With exposure to many texts, discussions on Functional English [ to write correct text messages, emails, applications], our Deaf students now are more confident of their own English Language Skills.

Our students now go for interviews and confidently tell the interviewer that they will prefer writing down information during the interview. Besides this with regular introduction to various topics at LEED Pune , courtesy Mohd Aqil Hajee- the instructor; our Deaf students recognise the English words as " it was taught at LEED Pune session" .

we have a lot of smiles and see a growing interest among the Deaf to improve their written English Language Skills.

so they all say ... " this word - we saw it at LEED Pune & we know what it means"...

:-)

Indian History.

We have conducted quite a few classroom sessions for sometime now. A little outdoor learning is fun too.

All geared up this Sunday morning 01st Aug 2011, with a good drizzle LEED Pune decided to come as close to Indian History as we possibly could.

Venue - Mahatma Gandhi National Memorial Society , Nagar Road Pune.

Everyone came with a gust of enthusiasm that no one can stand up to. We started our walk around the building. Reading through the scriptures, the messages, labels that spoke of the Indian National Movement, The Great People involved in the Freedom Struggle, the sacrifices, the arrests, the challenges, the visions leaders had for a Developed India.

With our Co Founder and interpreter with us what we didnt understand she interpreted. Information totally accessible we could see history unfold before our very eyes. It was overwhelming to see and feel the moments Mahatma Gandhi spent with his dear ones in this place.

We visited the Samadhi too. Everyone was quiet, not because we remain silent often but to pay our respects and it was still sinking in.. the sacrifices our Great Leaders gave for our Freedom.

Even though we kind of studied history we usually were asked to memorize evrything. Today we Understood it all.

It was a beautiful morning and we are Proud to be Indians.

Atsy