ABOUT CHHA

Mission Statement National:

CHHA is the national voice of all hard of hearing Canadians. It is a non-profit, self-help, bilingual consumer organization run by and for persons who are hard of hearing. The philosophy of CHHA is to produce knowledgeable hard of hearing consumers who understand how to have their needs met. Its mission is to raise public awareness concerning issues that are important for persons who are hard of hearing, to promote their integration in Canadian society, to remove any barriers to their participation and to generally make every community in Canada a better place for persons who are hard of hearing.

Mission Statement Provincial:

We are the Ontario Chapter of the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association (CHHA). As a chapter of CHHA, we are aware of and we promote the national CHHA mission within the province of Ontario.

What we do:

We understand, represent, and catalyze change to meet the needs of hard of hearing (HOH) and deafened Ontarians. We do this by being:
• Their best advocates provincial issues and by engaging any government organization needed to achieve this;
• Their consumer protection advocates;
• Active within the Ontario private sector, and within the entire spectrum of “health care professionals and providers”; our goal being to help them recognize, and to educate them about hearing loss issues;
• A resource for people confronting hearing loss for the first time and for those who seek to prevent hearing loss.
• We seek funding on a province-wide basis to support what we do; we are financially prudent, responsible, and accountable for all funds we obtain.

How we work with others:

• We solicit and value information from our constituents; we keep them informed of what we are doing;
• We work cooperatively with other disability and hard-of-hearing associations; we are willing to be a resource to them.

How we work together:

• We maintain focused on the CHAA Ontario agenda as articulated in our strategic and business plans
• We work together with the Ontario Branches to: * Promote the CHHA National and CHHA Ontario missions
* Facilitate unity and communication
* Provide support to and represent the voice from the branches in our activities
• We have a clearly articulated organizational structure and responsibility structure
• We cultivate and nurture future leaders for the organization
• We are role models for the younger generation; we encourage their participation
• We are a fun, positive and constructive place for volunteers to be
• We readily identify and recognize the contributions of our volunteers, contributors and sponsors (internally and publicly)

Mission Statement York Region Branch:

As the York region Branch for CHHA, we bring the CHHA mission to the local level. We advocate on behalf of all hard of hearing and deafened individuals who live and work in York Region. We hold workshops and social events at various locations. Meet and support local government accessibility groups. To encourage individuals to self disclose and advocate their needs to have access to communicate.

What Do We Provide:

1. Education – Diagnosis, support, options, access, awareness.
2. Advocacy – Social accessibility, policy lobbying, coaching public on advocacy.
3. Social Development – Interaction, mentoring, networking, support and belonging.
4. Advancement of Support – Devices, support, technology awareness, advocacy.

Who Do We Provide It To:

1. Children – Developing skills while hard of hearing
2. Teens – Social integration and development while hard of hearing
3. Adults – Lifestyle development while hard of hearing
4. Elderly – Quality of life and social interaction while hard of hearing

CHHA’s goal is to increase public awareness of hearing loss and to help Canadians with hearing loss fully integrate into Canadian society.