• 2012 HLA-California State Conference


    Date:
    February 17-18, 2012

    Location:
    Oakland Airport Hilton Hotel
    1 Hegenberger Road
    Oakland, CA 94621

    Download the HLA-CA Conference Flyer to promote the event for your chapter or organization.

    Bridging Hearing Challenges is the theme of the 11th annual Hearing Loss Association of California State Conference, to be held at the Oakland Airport Hilton Hotel.  After an absence of almost 5 years due to the ongoing worldwide economic situation, the Hearing Loss Association of California is happy to resume its goal of providing information, education and resources to hard of hearing HLAA members and the general public through its state conferences.  We welcome all HLAA members, their families and friends, and the general public to join us during President’s Day weekend, February 17 and 18, 2012, for two days of education, information and loads of fun.

    Nearby Attractions

    The hotel is located just outside the Oakland Airport with free shuttle service between the airport and the hotel as well as a shuttle to a nearby BART station where you can grab a BART train to downtown San Francisco.  From downtown San Francisco you can shop till you drop at a huge shopping district, or venture off to nearby Chinatown, Fisherman’s Wharf or Pier 39 amusement pier.  The Oakland Museum in Oakland’s Chinatown is a quick BART trip away, or visit nearby Jack London Square along the Bay.

    Registration Information

    Your full registration includes the Welcome Reception Friday night, Saturday breakfast session, luncheon, admission to all workshops and the exhibit hall.  You can download a copy from our website.

    Hearing Accessibility

    Williams Sound FM assistive listening devices (courtesy of Williams Sound) will be provided for use in workshops. Audio loop systems and a few loop listening devices (courtesy of Contacta, Inc.) will also be available.  All events will have real time captioning.  If you need a sign language interpreter, please indicate that on your Registration Form.

    Drag your cursor over “HLA-CA State Conference” to find more detailed information regarding Lodging and Transportation, Schedule, Registration, Exhibitors, and Fundraising and Sponsors.

    Friday Evening Welcome Reception – Brenda Battat

    The Executive Director of HLAA from Bethesda, MD, will share with us the goals, accomplishments and vision for HLAA from the national office.  Much work goes on behind the scenes.  Brenda will share what those activities are and what role we play at the local level to bring hearing loss into the forefront of acceptance and away from ignorance.  Brenda will also assist Mary Clark, past HLA-CA President, in conducting a leadership training session for chapter leaders Friday afternoon.

    Saturday Luncheon Speaker – John Waldo

    Mr. Waldo will speak on recent accomplishments in making fully accessible movies a reality in California. He is an attorney located in Portland, Oregon, whose practice focuses on people with hearing loss, something he has lived with since childhood.  He works on access and advocacy issues through the Washington Communication Access Project (Wash-CAP), and represents individuals on issues involving job discrimination, workers’ compensation, education and private insurance matters.

    Saturday Workshops

    Three to four workshops will run at a time, for four sessions.  There will be an exciting roster of informative and uplifting workshops covering vocational issues, coping strategies, support, and new technology.  We are also making an effort to provide information and help to veterans and to parents of hard of hearing children.

    Saturday Evening Banquet

    Randy Rutherford, comedian, musician, and entertainer will provide entertainment. Our banquet on Saturday evening is the crowning event of the conference.

    HLA-CA Board of Trustees Meeting

    Friday from 9:00AM to 4:30PM.  We invite all chapter leaders and members to attend this meeting and see our State Association Board of Trustees in action.

    Exhibit Hall

    See and try a wide variety of hearing health products.  Each person’s hearing loss is individual.  Find out what will help YOU!  Open Friday 1:00PM until 5:00PM and Saturday 8:00AM until 5:00PM.

    Shopping Raffle and Prizes

    A shopping raffle allows attendees to enter to win the prizes they are interested in from those on display at the conference.  In addition, the winning ticket for the Grand Prize from our statewide raffle will be drawn at the dinner banquet.  Attendance is not required to win the Grand Prize.