STINK WEEK 2015 - January 25th - 31st, 2015

Are You Ready To MAKE A STINK ABOUT HEARING LOSS

SIGN UP BY Thursday, January 15th at noon to get your 2015 Stink Week T-Shirt!

What is Stink Week?

Stink Week was invented by a 4th grader, Jack Dunning, at the Blanchard Memorial School in Acton, MA. His older sister was born deaf and his parents founded the Decibels Foundation to ensure all children with hearing loss in Massachusetts receive the supports they need to succeed in life. Jack wanted his classmates to help children with hearing loss.

Jack realized that IT STINKS………

- that many children don’t receive the life-changing, hearing loss specific early intervention services that his sister received;

- that many families can’t afford hearing aids or spare parts for their cochlear implants so their children miss out on hearing the world; and

- that many parents and families don’t get the support they need to help their children with hearing loss succeed!

So he asked his 4th grade class to MAKE A STINK ABOUT HEARING LOSS – literally! Since then, for one week in winter, over 600 infants, toddlers, school-age children, high school students, parents, and friends have committed to wear a Stink Week t-shirt for 7 days to raise awareness and funds for children with hearing loss.

Stinkers create their own fundraising pages at www.classy.org/stinkweek2015 and ask friends, families, and neighbors to donate to help them reach their goal. Some have fully embraced this stinky challenge and refrained from showering for the full 7 days, while others chose to wear the same t-shirt every day of Stink Week. Regardless of the level of stink, all our stinkers have helped raise over $60,000 to support children with hearing loss and their families.

Why Stink?

Here are a few of the many reasons from some of our own Decibels families whose children attend the Early Intervention Hearing Loss Program at Minute Man Arc in Concord, MA:

"We'd like people to participate in Stink Week to raise funds for Decibels so that the Minute Man play groups and parent support groups get the funding they need to continue and expand. Every child with hearing loss and their family should get the chance to be part of a support network like ours. It gives children and families the tools they need to thrive and and helps them feel connected to others who face similar challenges." ~Sharon O’Brien, mother of Willow

"Deacon wants you to get really smelly so he and other kids with hearing loss can continue having great one-on-one speech therapy at Minute Man. Stink it up for Deacon and his friends to support the awesome program for kids with hearing loss. They get to play and learn how to be good listeners." ~Ellen and Dennis Steward, parents of Deacon

"So that children and their parents can continue to benefit from the resources that Decibels helps provide. These dedicated providers and services give each child the support to be on their way to meeting their full potential." ~Naomi Campbell-Siok, mother of Delia

STINK WEEK 2015

Raise Funds
Raise Awareness
Make a STINK about Hearing Loss

Contact Bonnie Fitzpatrick at b.fitzpatrick@decibelsfoundation.org with any questions.