Less than a week into its exciting Kickstarter campaign, Hearing Our Way, the magazine for children and teens with hearing loss, has already achieved more than 65 percent of its funding goal.
The magazine, envisioned and established by Jericho High School alumna Melanie Paticoff, provides social and emotional support to young people with hearing aids and cochlear implants.
The campaign will raise money to send magazines free of charge to children around the world. Hearing Our Way launched on Kickstarter, the increasingly-popular crowd-funding platform that connects the public with entrepreneurs, with a fundraising event for friends and family at TechArtista, a co-working space in St. Louis, MO.
Now, Hearing Our Way is depending on support from the Jericho community to reach its goal.
“Hearing Our Way provides an opportunity for children and teens to not only read about others like them, but connect with those who are experiencing similar challenges with hearing loss,” said Paticoff. “The magazine teaches kids and teens to celebrate their differences and provides vital social and emotional support to young people during their formative years.”
Hearing Our Way backers have the opportunity to sponsor free subscriptions for families, teachers, schools, and offices and earn rewards including Sophie’s Tales children’s books about hearing loss.
Paticoff hopes the open-captioned Kickstarter video will raise awareness about hearing loss and cochlear implants and jump start buzz around this new publication.
The magazine is produced by Sophie’s Tales LLC, an educational publishing company started by Paticoff that specializes in products for children with hearing loss.
Paticoff’s mission to raise awareness about this cause is driven by passion and a personal connection to deaf education.
Paticoff’s cousin, Julie, is profoundly deaf and hears with bilateral cochlear implants.
After recognizing a lack of products designed to support children like Julie, Paticoff designed Hearing Our Way to connect young people with hearing loss and provide them with role models, advice, and content designed specifically for them.
Following a successful prototype first issue that launched in April, distribution has reached more than 5,000 people worldwide, encompassing 49 states and 27 countries.
As of press time, the Kickstarter campaign has raised $6,707 of its $10,000 goal. The project will only be funded if at least $10,000 is pledged by Sep. 8 at 12:21 p.m.
To donate to the Kickstarter campaign click here.
For more information about Paticoff and her ventures, visit www.HearingOurWay.com, www.SophiesTales.com and www.MelaniePaticoff.com.
