Donations Make Even More Possible
A generous gift to the Expanding Equal Access capital campaign came from someone with a long-standing connection to D&HHS. In fact, she was there when it began.
“It’s true,” said Sandy Faulkner. “I’ve been involved with D&HHS from the beginning. I was invited by Marty Jansen to join a group that had come together to do something about the lack of services for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.”
She added something that anyone who knew Marty will understand: “I still really miss him.”
When Sandy heard about the move that D&HHS could make to the Special Olympics Michigan Unified Sports & Inclusion Center, it was an easy decision for her to get behind the project with a gift.
“There is so much that is exciting about the move to the new building,” she said. “It gives the people we serve a home. The auditorium, gym, kitchen, fields, and sufficient parking give us the ability to hold events on-site. Collaboration with so many other non-profits will give us a higher profile in the general community. It’s an amazing opportunity.”
Sandy added that after more than 30 years since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Deaf, DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing still face discrimination and still struggle to obtain their right to equal access and accommodations.
“D&HHS is there to fill the gap,” she said. “They provide services, they educate, they support and they advocate. No one else does they do. My experience is that at D&HHS they say ‘We’ll figure it out; we’ll find a way.’ And they’ve done this for decades on a shoe-string budget. Donations make even more possible.”
Executive director Deb Atwood agreed. “It’s donors like Sandy, she said, who equip the organization to serve, to educate, to support, and to advocate.”
“We always knew that we had passionate people who support our work,” she said. “This Capital Campaign and the fundraising we are doing for the move has just shown us over and over again that the people who are in our corner are the best. We are so grateful to Sandy, and to the many others who have given to the Campaign, for their very meaningful shows of support.”
You can learn more about and support our Expanding Equal Access Capital Campaign by visiting our campaign webpage.