Many children have speech deficits that can limit their future and it is critical to provide support as early as possible.
Reach Child and Youth Development Society provides speech therapy to children with complex development needs and also uses augmentative tools like iPads that help children communicate for the first time. In order to support this work, Reach Society is reprising the Gift of Speech Holiday Campaign this year. Donors to speech therapy help parents who think that their child may never be able to communicate with them.
Gift of Speech 2021 focuses on Nicole, who understood little language and rarely used words to communicate when she began speech therapy at Reach Society. When she graduated from the under 6 program, she was communicating verbally using words and short phrases and was using an iPad to learn to use longer sentences. Speech therapy assesses and supports issues related to communication development in children.
Warner Bros. Superman & Lois cast are kicking off this year’s Gift of Speech campaign with a donation of 120 hours of speech therapy.
Erik Valdez is a supportive parent who plays Kyle Cushing on the Superman and Lois show and has recorded a video message in support to be aired on Giving Tuesday 2021. In another show of tremendous community support, Envision Financial, a division of First West Credit Union, will match $5,000 in donations once $10,000 is raised! “Every child deserves the support they need,” says Dave Lanphear, president of Envision Financial. “As a financial cooperative, we’re honoured to have the opportunity to positively impact the lives of the children in our community through the REACH Gift of Speech program and encourage you to do the same.”
Reach Society aims to remove 50 children from the waitlist to receive speech therapy with the Gift of Speech Holiday Campaign. A gift of $50 will allow one child to receive a speech therapy session – and 10 sessions are enough to make a meaningful difference to a family. Please visit https://www.reachchild.org/gift-of-speech-2021/ to find out more.
