In 1993 parents and their children were at the rehabilitation camp for deaf children in Rabka, southern Poland. It was there, that some parents invented the idea of the Association of Parents and Friends of Deaf Children. And as the group of people linked by common needs and expectations we have been together for five years now.

The Association of Parents and Friends of Deaf Children works very closely with The Institute of Deaf and Dumb in Warsaw, which, by the way, has a great tradition. In 1997 the Institute celebrated its 180th anniversary. The Institute provides full-time education in elementary school and high school for children who experienced substantial loss of hearing. Children from central Poland attend both these schools. The Institute aims to become the educational and cultural center for deaf people.

We know that together with the society we can help deaf people so we hope:

• more opportunities will be available for them
• complete education will be given them
• their life will become better and more fruitful
• they can life to the fullest
• they will become productive members of society
• the government will realize that deaf people can be valuable members of society
• the society will realize that they can help deaf children giving more respect

Our goal in general is to give equal opportunities to all deaf children. In order to reach this aspiration there are several aspects we focus on:

• improving the system of their education
• fully integrating them into society by giving legally guaranteed, equal rights
• giving opportunities for learning about their country
• give their parents opportunities to share the ideas about living with deaf children
• pursuing the importance of signed language for deaf children, their families and society