Johnson City Sertoma Club PO Box 774 Johnson City, NY 13790
Women were welcomed as members of Sertoma in 1985 and comprise a vital part of our current membership. The first all-female Sertoma Club was the First Progressive Sertoma Club in Tampa, Florida, chartered November 22, 1985. In 1987, the International Board of Directors approved STAND (Sertomans Together Advocate No Drugs), an anti-drug education program, as an International Sponsorship.
In 1992 and 1993 the Communicative Disorders and Hearing Impaired Scholarships were established. Further 1990's milestones included the 1997 introduction of the Sertoma Fantasy Baseball Camps and the surpassing of its $10 million goal by the Foundation for the Building A Legacy endowment campaign.
The New Century 2000 - 2002 saw the introduction of the first city-wide service project as a part of the International Convention in Tampa, which was a great success. The Community Service Matching Grant, funded by the Foundation, found enthusiastic support throughout Sertoma. And, the first female president, Diana Caine-Helwig SOARed during her 2001-2002 term.
The first issue of the Sertoman Digest was published in November 2002 . This publication was designed with an organizational focus to be mailed between isssues of the Sertoman Magazine.
Sertoma joined the WISE EARS! Coalitioin, a health education campaign of the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Headquarters introduced the Sertoma International/WISE EARS! Campaign to the clubs for implementation during May's Better Hearing & Speech Month. This national service project is focused on noise-induced hearing loss.
On November 15, 1960, the Sertoma Foundation was formed to strengthen the partnership between our international organization and our clubs. In 1963, after a long search for an International sponsorship, Sertoma clubs were encouraged to help the more than 24 million Americans who have speech and hearing disorders. This sponsorship continues to be of utmost relevance, as there are currently over 50 million Americans with speech and hearing disorders.
The Foundation began to establish Sertoma Centers for Communication Disorders in 1973.
Four years later, the Foundation began to encourage affiliation with existing speech and hearing facilities and departments. The Affiliate program has been very successful, with over 300 facilities now affiliated with Sertoma clubs and the Foundation.
The Foundation provides the funding for scholarships and grants. It has created public education materials and an advisory council of speech and hearing professionals. It was a founding member of the Council for Better Hearing and Speech Month. In 1986, the Foundation coordinated Better Hearing and Speech Month for the entire country. More...
