Donations Totaling $32,000 Help Provide Much-needed Playground Equipment for Students at Oklahoma School for the Deaf

OKLAHOMA CITY – They say it’s the little things that make a house a home. For the students at the Oklahoma School for the Deaf (OSD) the school is their home for most of the year. And for these students, something like new playground equipment is more than a little thing—it is a lot like the best Christmas ever.

Larry Hawkins, school superintendent at the OSD, said, “We are so happy for these kids, and thankful for the organizations’ donations. We are starting to install some of the equipment now and the kids can hardly wait.”

Three organizations donated money to reach a total of $32,000 of the school’s over $100,000 goal: The Charles B. Goddard Foundation contributed $24,000; the OG&E Foundation contributed $5,000; and the Southwestern Bell (SWB) Pioneers (SWB retirees) contributed $3,000.

“Most of the equipment that we are replacing is at least 30 years old, so you can imagine the shape it’s in. We are truly fortunate to have some very devoted staff that started writing grant proposals to help replace as much of the equipment as possible. Gayle Luna and Terry Gregory worked very hard to make this a reality.” said Hawkins.
In a letter to the school, William R. Goddard, Jr. of the Goddard Foundation expressed his thanks for being asked to be included as one of the contributors and stressed that this was a worthy cause, and hoped that even more money could be raised in the future.

Hawkins added, “The funding we’ve been asking for would completely renovate two separate playgrounds; one for the younger children and one for the older kids, and these donations are a great start to achieving those goals.”

Judy Santillie of the SWB Pioneers said, “We really thought this sounded like a worthwhile and much needed project. We’re really glad that we were able to help these children. We think a lot of the school.”

Carla Brockman of the OG&E Company Foundation said, “We try to find ways to be supportive of the communities we serve–especially when a project touches a lot of families like this one does.”

During the 2004-05 school year, 178 deaf students attended pre-school through high school classes on the Oklahoma School for the Deaf campus. Preschool programs are available for children who are deaf at regional sites in Broken Arrow and Edmond. Early intervention services help parents prepare young children for school. Staff also provided 1758 outreach consultations and other services for children who are deaf or hard of hearing from birth to age 21, public school students, parents, public school educators and teacher training institutions. All services are available at no charge. The Oklahoma School for the Deaf is a division of the Department of Rehabilitation Services.

For more information about OSD’s programs or fundraising efforts, call (580) 622-4900 in the Sulphur area or (888) 685-3323 toll free. The numbers are accessible by voice or telecommunications equipment for the deaf.

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