NMS Cares

Thursday, October 23, 2014

NMSC on a Sign Language Workshop Streak

After a successfully finishing a 3-month Basic Sign Language Workshop with parents from the Baguio SPED Center Hearing Impaired Sequence, NMS CARES forges on its mission to encourage the active involvement of the community through skill-based classes that will benefit social workers, health workers, service providers, and advocates who are often faced with the dilemma of not being able to communicate effectively with Deaf individuals they work with or service for. It is with this in mind that NMSC has opened its sign language classes not only to parents and immediate family members of young Deaf individuals, but in essence to anyone who find that there is a need for them to learn how to communicate with the Deaf members of the community.

Helping Hands, Healing Hearts Ministries cares for the sick and dying children and their families by providing the children’s physical needs. They are both hospital and community based and provide medications, surgeries, help for medical work ups and a place for children to come and recover in.*

Baguio-based Recovery Unit Director Marissa Dela Peña believes that it is crucial for them to learn how to communicate properly with their patients who are Deaf, which eliminates frustrations and possible miscommunications especially with younger Deaf patients.

The Basic Sign Language Workshop is currently being conducted by NMSC Trainer Ian Lester Kingat, and will run for 3 months. It is part of NMSC's FOND Program that aim to educate people on how to better understand, communicate, and connect with Deaf individuals in the community.

*http://facebook.com/HelpingHandsPhilippines

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About NMS Cares

NMS CARES, INC. is a Philippine SEC-registered non-stock, non-profit association with a vision for Deaf children to reach their dreams. The organization fully commits to advocating for the Deaf children of the community while looking forward to expanding its service all throughout the less privileged young Deaf individuals in the Asia Pacific.

To know more about NMS CARES, please visit http://nms-cares.org or email us at info@nms-cares.org.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Props to our Deaf friends!

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Nora Quiambao, Hearing Parent of Deaf Child

Family Oneness Nurturing the Deaf (FOND) Program
NMS CARES INC.
http://www.nms-cares.org

Music: Lowercase Noises - We Are Okay

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

NMSC Pilot Basic Sign Language Workshops a Success

October 8, 2014, Baguio City - NMS Cares concluded its pioneer Basic Sign Language Workshops, which is part of the Family Oneness Nurturing the Deaf Program, with lots of laughter and hope for the future.

NMS CARES INC. Basic Sign Language Workshops pioneering class: Parents from Baguio SPED Center.

On October 2, NMSC rolled out certificates of completion and recognition to the 20 parents of Deaf learners from the Baguio SPED Center. The parents have all completed NMSC’s 3-month basic sign language program that is focused on teaching parents, guardians, and family members of young Deaf learners basic sign to help them communicate better with their kids.

“Ang laki ng naitulong sa akin ng sign language kasi noon hirap na hirap ako makipag-communicate sa anak ko kasi hindi ako marunong mag-sign language. Hindi ko siya maintindihan, hindi niya ako maintindihan.” (Learning basic sign language has been a big help for me because in the past, it has been very difficult for me to communicate with my Deaf child. I can’t understand what she wants to tell me, she can’t understand me.)

Parent of one of the young Deaf learners Nora Quiambao was teary-eyed halfway through our interview with her when asked about the impact of the program in her and her 8-year-old Deaf kid’s life. She lamented on the frustrations she and her family had to go through just because they cannot communicate well with their youngest family member. But now, she enthusiastically tells us about how she has become the family’s designated interpreter, making it easier for everyone in their household to interact with her.

“Ngayong natuto ako mag-sign language, kahit pag nasa jeep kami pauwi, nag-uusap kaming dalawa. Tuwang-tuwa nga yung mga katabi namin, yung mga kasakay namin kasi tinatanong nila ako kung ano daw ang pinag-uusapan namin.” (Now that I know how to sign, I can talk to my kid during our daily commute going home and talk about her day in school. Even the people around us love watching us talk and some would even ask me what we’re talking about.)

The thrust of the FOND Program is to help strengthen the bond between Deaf child and his or her family members through constant communications. Aside from free sign language classes given to family members and the general community, the program also aims to educate people on how to better understand, communicate, and connect with Deaf individuals in the community.

Aside from teaching sign, NMSC trainers also enlighten program attendees on Deaf culture in order to ensure a much clearer understanding on the ways of Deaf individuals and how to better interact with them.

The parents during their final presentation as part of the concluding program of the Basic Sign Language Workshops.

NMSC is set to launch a series of Basic Sign Language classes catering to the family members of Deaf learners from the other Deaf schools in the city. The organization’s Deaf professionals, closely monitored by NMSC’s Program Developer and Communications head, facilitate the classes.

(NMSC would like to extend it's gratitude to the staff and faculty of the Hearing Impaired Sequence of the Baguio SPED Center headed by Principal Niño Tibangay for letting us use their gym to conduct our workshops)

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About NMS Cares

NMS CARES, INC. is a Philippine SEC-registered non-stock, non-profit association with a vision for Deaf children to reach their dreams. The organization fully commits to advocating for the Deaf children of the community while looking forward to expanding its service all throughout the less privileged young Deaf individuals in the Asia Pacific.

To know more about NMS CARES, please visit http://nms-cares.org or email us at info@nms-cares.org.

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

#DidYouKnow

Friday, August 15, 2014

PRESS RELEASE: 4 COMPUTERS FOR 4 DEAF SCHOOLS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sarah Mamaril, Communications
sarah@nms-cares.org
+63 917 5195380
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August 15, 2014, Baguio City – NMS Cares, Inc. continue to forge solid partnerships with 3 Deaf schools in Baguio City, along with 1 located in nearby La Trinidad, by setting up a complete computer unit at each school.

The second-hand computers have been previously donated by New Media Services Pty. Ltd. and has been refurbished to ensure optimum performance prior to their installation at the three city-based Deaf schools namely: Baguio School for the Deaf, Easter College-SPED Department and Deaf Resource Center - SLRI. A unit was also installed for the use of the Deaf class at the Benguet SPED Center in La Trinidad. NMSC is also looking into the possibility of setting up an Internet connection for the schools, with the exception of BSD as they already have a working connection. The computers will be maintained by the organization through monthly maintenance checks, as well as apply upgrades when necessary.

"Technology plays a crucial role in the advancement of Deaf education. Aside from our free after-school IT Program that we are launching next month, we want to make sure that the kids have access to a computer, especially when at school," Martin Eyking, on why NMSC has decided to place a computer at each school despite the fact that the organization will soon have a training space at the University of Baguio, the result of a partnership with the university's FRB Foundation, who are also strong advocates for Persons With Disabilities.

Furthermore, the teachers in preparing for their lessons can also utilize the computers. This move is just a small part of NMSC's ABCDE Program (Advancement Beyond the Classroom in Deaf Education), where the focus is on experiential learning.

PC installation at the Baguio School for the Deaf

Explaining computer functions to a Deaf educator at Benguet SPED Center

A computer addition to Easter College - SPED department's modest teaching facilities.

With the educators at the Deaf Resource Center - SLRI

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