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The Seaver Vision Award
And the award goes to... Shelli Janning
The 2023 Seaver Vision Award was presented to Shelli Janning to a standing ovation at a recent ceremony held at the 2023 H&V Leadership Conference in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Jennifer Zysset of NE H&V shares that as the NE Hands & Voices Guide By Your Side Coordinator, Shelli is often the first person to connect with a family. With an unfailing and unbiased approach, she always seems to know the right thing to say to let parents know the good, the messy, and the beautiful in raising a child who is D/HH. Sharing what she has learned while raising a daughter who is unilaterally deaf, Shelli has a knack for making families feel connected as she talks about her emotions on the journey, and how it’s okay if they are different from other members in the family. She doesn’t hesitate to take the show on the road, with her willingness to join a family at an Audiologist appointment or for a cup of coffee to talk. She works tirelessly to continue building the GBYS program by adding events, recruiting Parent Guides (she has a full team!), and creating resources that will help families and professionals alike! She has created a Roadmap for Late Onset Hearing Loss as well as one for newborns who refer on the newborn hearing screening that will benefit families for years!
Congratulations to Shelli Janning!
The Leeanne Seaver Vision Award was established in recognition of Leeanne’s extraordinary commitment to families with children who are deaf and hard of hearing. Her visionary leadership and keen insight as a parent, co-founder and first executive director of Hands & Voices helped set the standard for unwavering advocacy, unbiased parent support, effective parent involvement, and parent/professional collaboration. Leeanne’s leadership provided hope to families worldwide and exemplified H&V advocacy at the local, state, national and international levels. Her articulation of “what works for your child is what makes the choice right” captures the commitment of this organization to the child-led/family-centered process of discovering what it will take for each child to reach his or her potential.
The Seaver Vision Award was established in 2012 and is given annually to a parent, professional, organization, or agency that exemplifies the values and commitment to the Hands & Voices vision.
Previous winners include:
- 2013 - Harold Johnson, PhD
- 2014 - Dr. Susan Wiley of Ohio and Karen Wisinski, GBYS Coordinator for Michigan H&V
- 2015 - Susan Lane of British Columbia, Canada and Andrea Marwah of Illinois H&V
- 2016 - Cindy Roller of Nevada H&V and Christine Griffin of Washington H&V
- 2017 - Nancy Sager of California
- 2018 - Lisa Crawford of Texas H&V
- 2019 - Teresa Kazemir, British Columbia H&V
- 2021 - Sarah Roof, Kentucky H&V
- 2022- Ginger Mullin, Illinois EHDI
- 2023 - Shelli Janning, Nebraska H&V
Nominations
If you’re interested in nominating a person, group or agency for The Seaver Vision Award, please tell us why he/she/it deserves this recognition. Share your story in 500 words or less, and be sure to include the following information:
- The nominee’s name and title (if applicable) and contact information including phone number and email address;
- Your contact information including name, email, phone number, address, and your role/title;
- A letter telling us why this nominee should win the Seaver Vision Award;
- At least one letter of support—strong candidates will have the documented support of both parents and professionals in the field. (This letter should not exceed 300 words.)
- The winner will have made significant contributions to family support for the field of deafness and hearing loss in the spirit of Hands & Voices mission
- Eligible candidates include but are not limited to Hands & Voices members.
Award process
Nominations are accepted up to six weeks before the Hands & Voices Leadership Conference where the award is presented annually.
