Emma Faye
Emma Faye went profoundly deaf at the age of three. She has spent her life turning a disability into an ability. Emma Faye is an internationally known role model for the (D)deaf and hard-of-hearing (HOH) community and founder to nonprofit organization, Aid the Silent which is a system of support for economically disadvantaged deaf/HOH children and teens to reach their full potential and live life more richly by providing funds for resources, ministry, research and education.
Emma Faye was crowned Miss San Antonio twice and placed Top 4 in Miss Texas. She was named San Antonio’s Woman of the Year and Governor Greg Abbott has appointed her to serve three terms on the Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities, a bi-partisan committee that writes policy recommendations for those with disabilities.
Emma Faye and trusty service dog, Hank, are on a show titled “Hank and Emma Faye” for KLRN PBS and other Texas markets focusing on sign language, inclusivity and kindness. The show won an Emmy in 2020. She was one of the five characters for the IMAX movie “Into America’s Wild” produce by Academy Award® nominated producers MacGillivray Freeman Films narrated by Morgan Freeman. This movie was released in February 2020 at the Smithsonian in DC and is being shown world-wide on IMAX and giant screens as well as sponsored by Go USA – the US National Tourism Department. She spent six months filming a pilot show for ABC called “Ordinary to Extraordinary.”
With over 70+ TV appearances as well as print and digital media, Emma was recently featured on Cosmopolitan Magazine. Emma Faye is the “go to” media expert for those with hearing loss and inclusion of those with disabilities.
Emma Faye through her non-profit Aid the Silent throws an all-day music festival called Good Vibrations Music & Arts Festival (because deaf “feel” the music). This festival brings together the (D)deaf and Hard-of-Hearing(HOH) with the hearing world with a fully accessible experience through ten hours of live captioning, ASL Interpretation, t-coiling, vibrating backpacks, sound wave wall and an LED dance floor that syncs to the music. No deaf/HOH person is segregated out to a “special area” – they can be anywhere on the festival grounds and be included. This festival is attended by several thousand each year and won “Best of Fest for Charity Music Festival” at FestForum in 2019.
Emma Faye travels all around the country speaking at business conventions, school, ministries, churches and conferences sharing her story of hearing loss and letting others know about the programs Aid the Silent offers. She is the primary fundraiser and Executive Director of Aid the Silent as well as a mission staff member for Deaf Young Life.
For a full bio go to emmafayerudkin.com & aidthesilent.com