Rotary Club of San Antonio announced Emma as Outstanding Young San Antonian of the year. She and her trusty side-kicked Service Dog, Hank, are on a PBS child’s video series called “Hank & Emma Faye” to teach children sign language, kindness and inclusivity which recently won a Regional Emmy.
2021 OUTSTANDING YOUNG
SAN ANTONIAN AWARD
EMMA FAYE RUDKIN
Founder and Executive Director
Aid the Silent
The Outstanding Young San Antonian award has been presented every year since 1931. Recent recipients include Ryan Lugalia-Hollon, Lorenzo Gomez, April Ancira Thompson, Rey Saldana and Brandon Logan. Click here for a complete list of the recipients: OYSA
Emma Faye went profoundly deaf at the age of three and has spent her life turning a disability into an ability. Emma Faye is an internationally known role model and public speaker for the (D)deaf and hard-of-hearing (HOH) community and Founder and Executive Director of Aid the Silent.
Aid the Silent is a system of support for the four main programs of: deaf ministry, deaf education, deaf awareness and deaf resources. The overall mission of the non-profit is to aid economically disadvantaged deaf children and teens to reach their full potential and to live life more richly by providing funds to receive hearing and speech resources (hearing aids, FM systems, speech therapy), ASL lessons, ministry-related activities and education enrichment programs.
Emma Faye created the campaign called #ShowYourAids to encourage the (D)deaf/HOH to be proud of who they are. The campaign went viral with 10,000s of people posting their hearing aids and implants all over the world – giving Aid the Silent a global presence.
During the Covid 19 pandemic, Emma Faye was featured on Cosmopolitan magazine, Fox Los Angeles, Fox Houston, Houston Chronicle, San Antonio Express, San Antonio Magazine, Yahoo News, Yahoo.com, Yahoo Style and many more for her advocacy work of #CleartoBeClear masks campaign promoting and selling clear face masks for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. What started as an injustice for Emma Faye of not being able to navigate life under the Covid mask mandate and being denied service – turned into a national movement for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. Emma Faye’s non-profit has sold over 35,000 clear masks.
Read Emma Faye’s bio to learn more about her accolades and impact on the community. Emma Faye is also a proud member of our club. Click here: Emma Faye Rudkin
Emma Faye is a national speaker who has touched the lives of thousands of people who have had the opportunity to hear her story. If there is one thing that her audience remembers about Emma, it is her ability to connect on a raw and genuine level to those around her. She speaks with authenticity and with an immense passion for Jesus.