Welcome to my blog!
Welcome to my blog!
Hello! Welcome to my blog, and thank you for following my posts! I thought this blog would be a great way for you to learn a little more about me and to follow my interests through the years. Perhaps you have stumbled here haphazardly from the internet or maybe my website www.hippkids.com has led you here, either way I hope you have a few minutes to spare.
As a quick introduction, I am a high school student living outside of Cleveland, Ohio. Most people have heard of Cleveland before, it is also referred to as 'the mistake on the lake' or that 'place where the river caught on fire.' There are a number of Cleveland jokes in addition to our football team :) but I will end the negative references here. I enjoy a number of activities both in and out of school, including debate, cross county, visual art and traveling. I am very active in my community as a member of a number of youth advisory boards focused on health and policy initiatives, and I aspire to obtain a career in government where I can positively affect people's lives.
To start things off, I want to say- May is National Hearing and Speech month! What a great time to raise awareness about hearing health!
If you are like most people, you do not think about your hearing too often. Hearing, like most other aspects of our health is not something we usually think about until we encounter a problem. Yet, our hearing really is so precious and something that we should all think twice about- just ask anyone who has experienced hearing loss. Hearing health and hearing loss is always on my mind, as my sister has a hearing impairment. Growing up very much aware of hearing issues has led me to create my nonprofit pen pal program hippkids–hearing impaired pen pals. I am keenly aware of how hearing loss can cause feelings of isolation and loneliness, and my goal is to provide a venue for children and teens to connect with each other in a caring, supportive community. You can learn more about me and my program by visiting my website: www.hippkids.com
-Ryan
