New Year Greetings!

Greetings and Happy New Year!!

We have had a great year, thanks to all
of your support and participation!

While the economy has affected many non-profits,
we still feel very fortunate to have remained active
and vital within our unique community. 

We’d like to share with you some of the highlights
of this past year, as we look forward to continued
growth within our organization.  We appreciate all
that our supporters have done for us in the past four years,
and as we begin this exciting new decade, we hope
we can continue to receive your ongoing participation,
support and commitment to KODAWest.

~ Highlights of 2009 ~

Parent Workshop & Teen Forum @ GLAD
Tom Bull, Keynote Speaker
Francine Stern & Ricky Mitchell, Moderators
John Arce, Joyce Linden, Henrik Ek, Jonathan Gleicher,
Stephanie & Vanessa Woodard, Panelists
Richard Ray & Heidi Booth, Presenters
Special thanks to GLAD for donating their facilities for the workshop.

Family Bowling Night @ Montrose Bowling
Sponsored by Dawn Sign Press

Spring Fling, McCambridge Park
Cara Amores, Storyteller
Brenda Castellejos, Face-painter
Maisha Franklin, All-Around Assistant

Establishment of First Board of Directors
Mike Anderson
Deanne Bray
Tina Jo Briendel
Bill Greene
Charles Katz
Joyce Linden
Francine Stern

Mother Father Deaf Day Picnics
Hosted by Francine Stern (Los Angeles)
& Tina Jo Breindel (Riverside)

KODAWest 3rd Annual Camp (Big Bear)
Molly Bowen, Camp Director
Sponsored by:
Greenelight Foundation
Sprint Relay
Western Interpreting Network
Dawn Sign Press
Joe & Gina Sanders

4th Annual Day At The Beach
Huntington Beach

Recognition and Awarding by the City of Los Angeles
Bill Rosendahl, Councilman of District 11
Congratulatory lunch provided to KODAWest by Purple Communications.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We also launched a brand new website created by
Tayler Mayer who generously donated his time. 
Please visit our website for information about our
upcoming events and updates.  We also thank Mr. Mayer
for choosing KODAWest as his charity of choice during
Purple Communications’ Trailblazers Recognition Campaign.

www.kodawest.org

A special thanks to Cara and Daniel Amores for selecting
KODAWest as the recipient of a cash donation through
the Cars 4 Causes Program.

We also would like to thank the following individuals who
have volunteered much of their time to make our events successful!

Tayler Mayer, Warren Fujimori, Maisha Franklin,
Debra Leavitt-Gilmore, Brenda Castillejos, Cara Amores,
Marcy Woodard, Debby Patkin, Lisa Price, Irene Anaya, Rafif Jaber,
Melissa Vega, Diana Vescio, Lauren Vescio, Dyan Kovacs,
Walter Prescott, Allison Haynes, Stephanie Matlow,
Carole-Anne Bader, Erin Oleson, Cindy Burtin, Binnae Bridwell,
Heather George, Rose Trinh, Jeff Dumas, Eddie Lopez, and more.

If you are a member of Facebook,
please join the KODAWest group for upcoming events.

On behalf of all the KODAs and their families
we have served, thank you for your support!

Lisa Chahayed
Lauren Maucere
Kavita Pipalia

A Special Honor

We are proud to announce that the City of Los Angeles Council District 11 has chosen KODAWest to be recognized and honored, as the City of Los Angeles celebrates Deaf Awareness Month on September 25, for giving oustanding services to the community.

A Special Reception and Honor Ceremony will take place in the John Ferraro City Council Chambers on Friday, September 25th, at 9:30 am.

We thank you for being our INSPIRATION and for being a part of the KODAWest family!

4th Annual “Day at the Beach”

KODAWest host their 4th Annual “Day At The Beach”

Saturday August 15, 2009
11:00 am until 5:00pm

Huntington Beach
meet at Tower #19
@ PCH and Beach Blvd.

(When you drive on Beach Blvd. toward the water, make a right to the City Beach and Park near #19)

Parking Fee: $10.00 all day for cars, $40.00 for RVs.

Bring your own lunches, drinks, chairs and umbrellas.

Games and Prizes!!

If you have any questions, please email KODAWest@aol.com

Special Announcement

KODAWest is proud to announce that the founder of DeafRead.com and DeafVIDEO.TV, Mr. Tayler Mayer, has been chosen by Purple, a VRS company, as one of ten ‘Trailblazers’ in the deaf community.

An avid entrepreneur, Mr. Mayer’s work has sparked a virtual international deaf club, which allows thousands of people all over the world to connect and share information in a streamlined environment. Mr. Mayer, a technological visionary, has changed the lives of many in the deaf community.

For his recognition, Purple is donating $1,000 to a charity or non-profit organization of his choice. We are extremely honored that Mr. Mayer has chosen KODAWest as the designated recipient. A free public event to honor Mr. Tayler Mayer will take place on

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Crowne Plaza, 1500 S.
Raymond Ave, Fullerton, CA 92831

6:45 PM

To register for the event and to vote for Tayler,

go to http://www.purple.us/Pages/dreambigger_tb_detail.php?id=3

Click on Tayler’s profile where you can learn all about the inspiring work he has thus far accomplished and his “sky’s the limit” attitude. The announcement of the winner will be revealed at a gala honoring all ten trailblazers. The final award recipient will receive $10,000 which will go to the charity of his/her choice.

Let’s show our support for Tayler and vote!

For more inquires, please contact us at kodawest@aol.com