School for the Deaf Holds Kickoff Dinner

The Marie Katzenbach School for the Deaf in Trenton, which takes students from all over New Jersey, including a number from Morris County, will hold a kickoff dinner for its fundraising campaign at on Monday, Feb. 27, at 6:30 p.m.

Among the state dignitaries who will be at the kickoff will be Merrill Osmond, solo artist and lead singer of the Osmonds, and his son Justin

Jersey's Hope for Hearing Kickoff 2012 will launch this year's major fund-raising campaign to provide hearing aids for more than 50 disadvantaged New Jersey students with hearing loss, as well as a number of the Marie Katzenbach School's programs.

The kickoff rally will bring together two charities--the Olive Osmond Perpetual Hearing Fund and Making A Difference: One Step at a Time--plus numerous other sponsors, to jump-start this year's campaign. Prospective sponsors are invited to attend the kickoff on Feb 27. To secure an invitation, those interested in helping to give the gift of hearing are asked to call Donna Kelly at 609-709-3950.

Justin Osmond is 90 percent deaf. He founded the Olive Osmond Perpetual Hearing Fund in memory of his grandmother, the matriarch of the Osmond family who devoted her life to helping people with hearing loss. Both Justin and Merrill Osmond will speak at the kickoff, as will Dr. Angel M. Ramos, superintendent of the Marie Katzenbach School for the Deaf.

The Hope for Hearing yearly fund-raising campaign culminates in an annual three-day extravaganza in October. The event includes a kids' Karate Kick-a-Thon, pony rides and face painting. Merrill Osmond will be performing at a Dinner/Gala featuring Merrill Osmond and Friends. "Music is all I have ever known and this gives me the opportunity to work music into the art of healing," Merrill Osmond explains.

Capping the Jersey's Hope for Hearing three-day event will be a 5K Family Fun Run, sponsored by Making A Difference: One Step at a Time

"We are grateful for the passion and awareness about deaf children around the world that this event is creating," says Jersey's Hope for Hearing spokeswoman Jill DeLuca.

Among the dignitaries slated to attend the kickoff are Bert H. Steinmann, the Mayor of Ewing; Robert DiSogra, PhD, President of the New Jersey Academy of Audiology (NJAA); NJAA's Vice President of Professional Issues; Janet Koehnke, PhD, Director of the Audiology Doctoral Program at Montclair State University and the incoming president of NJAA; Donna Merchant, AuD, Secretary of the NJAA; Elizabeth Young and Evelyn Riccio of Horizon Blue Cross; Robert Prunetti, President of the Mercer Regional Chamber of Commerce; Liz Tindall, Chamber VP; and Joe Zoratti, Membership Manager of the Chamber.

To learn more about Jersey's Hope for Hearing, visit www.jerseyshopeforhearing.com.

The Marie Katzenbach School for the Deaf is located at 320 Sullivan Way in Trenton.