Today kicks off Loud Shirt Day across Australia.
Australia’s major hearing loss charities combine their efforts to make Loud Shirt Day a big deal on the national fundraising calendar for deaf children.
It’s all about wearing your wackiest shirt to increase community awareness about hearing loss and raise critically important funds for kids with deafness – people can sign up today to take part and raise money right up until the end of the year.
Families who know firsthand how important early help is are getting involved.
For example, kids like five-year-old Valentino in Penrith, who has been receiving hearing, speech and language services from leading provider NextSense, since he was born.
His mum, Jocelyn Bartuccio, has organised earmuffs for Valentino’s friends to wear with loud shirts on today so they can experience a lack of sound – and understand how Valentino feels without his hearing aids.
“NextSense services have really worked for Valentino. He does not need a school specialising in hearing loss because of the efforts of everyone on his team – medical staff, speech therapists, audiologists, teachers of the deaf – the support for our family has been such a gift,” she said.
“I am concerned there are families out there with a new baby with a hearing loss and are simply not aware first, how easy it is to get services, and second how critical it is to start therapy when their babies are just weeks old.
“That’s why we are fundraising for NextSense on 20 October. To help this life-changing organisation reach out to more children.”
You can help Valentino and Jocelyn raise funds by signing up to Loud Shirt Day
Donate directly to NextSense at nextsense.org.au/donate.
