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Last issue's most-read story: HOW DO I KNOW WHAT INTERPRETING AGENCY TO WORK FOR? / The Huffington Post
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Salem, OR
DEAF OREGONIANS CRY FOUL IN DHS CONTRACTING PROCESS
The Oregon Department of Human Services is in the process of hiring a company to coordinate and provide interpretive services for deaf and hard-of-hearing Oregonians, but the very people who are supposed to benefit from the services are saying they've been left out of the process. The deaf and hard-of-hearing community is criticizing the state for not soliciting its input when writing the request for proposal and for choosing an out-of-state company. / The Statesman Journal
Meridian, MS
NURSE WHO WEARS HEARING AIDS ALLEGES JOB DISCRIMINATION
Johnny Wheat, Jr., RN, is suing Rush Health Systems, alleging that hospital management removed him from his OR nurse position due to his genetic hearing loss and failed to accommodate him with comparable job duties, in violation of the ADA. Countering that Mr. Wheat had been removed for performance issues, Rush asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit through summary judgment. In a July 15 ruling, however, the court denied the request, opening the door to the possibility of a federal trial. / Outpatient Surgery
Washington, DC
DOJ PUSHES RULES FOR MOVIE THEATERS ON SERVING BLIND AND DEAF
The Justice Department moved Friday to open up the nation’s cinemas to the visually and hearing impaired with a slate of draft regulations requiring movie theaters to offer closed captioning and audio description technology. "This proposed rule will allow all Americans, including those with disabilities, to fully participate in the moviegoing experience,” Attorney General Eric Holder said in unveiling the plan. / The Hill
San Diego, CA
DRIVER HITS WOMAN, 64, ESCAPING SAN DIEGO ZOMBIE HORDE
A driver escaped a violent horde of people dressed as zombies pounding on his car by plowing through the crowd and hitting a 64-year-old pedestrian at a San Diego intersection, police say. The driver reportedly waited several minutes for the group to pass, but the sight of people covered in fake blood spooked his young children during the San Diego Zombie Walk, according to a police report. The mock zombies allegedly pounded on his black car and even shattered the windshield as the driver, who is deaf, inched his way through the intersection, the report said. / NY Daily News
Dover, OH
SISTERS, BOTH DEAF, GIVE BIRTH WITHIN 24 HOURS OF EACH OTHER
Even Donna Morgan, who oversees nearly 700 births a year at Union Hospital, was surprised by the news. Two sisters — both deaf — gave birth in the Dover hospital’s maternity ward less than 24 hours a part. “This is not something we see every day,” said Morgan, the nurse manager of maternity and pediatrics. / Canton Repository
Manhattan Beach, CA
CHEF DARREN WEISS TEACHES DEAF CHILDREN HOW TO COOK AT HIS RESTAURANT
Matthew Panameno steadied a portabello mushroom in the kitchen of Darren’s restaurant in downtown Manhattan Beach, nimbly slicing it into tiny slivers. Next to him, Jasmin Ostrander, 8, carefully diced up sprigs of parsley, tapping the shoulder of chef Darren Weiss to get his approval. Weiss, who is hearing-impaired, taught a group of children with profound hearing loss how to cook Tuesday, along with the basics of owning a restaurant and healthy eating. / Daily Breeze
Rochester, NY
THE ADA AT 24: HONORING THE UNSUNG HEROES / RIT PRESIDENT BILL DESTLER
For most college students, the Americans with Disabilities Act has been the law of the land their entire lives. But the road to get to this point was a long one, paved by men and women who most have never heard of, but without their efforts many of our fellow Americans would not enjoy the lives they now lead. Let me share a little about two of these pioneers, Robert F. Panara and Dr. E Ross Stuckless. Both worked tirelessly to help students who are deaf and hard of hearing achieve a college education and a better life. / The Huffington Post
Greensboro, NC
JANE FERNANDES SETTLES IN AS NEW GUILFORD COLLEGE PRESIDENT
Don’t worry if new Guilford College President Jane Fernandes doesn’t look you in the eye. Most likely, she’s glancing at the interpreter behind you. “I want to create connections with people,” said Fernandes, who was born deaf. “But when I’m not looking at them — when I’m looking at my interpreter — it hurts me in some ways. ... But I’m working on it." / News & Record
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Toronto, ON, Canada
DEAF-BLIND WOMAN TESTS CANADA'S EQUALITY GUARANTEE
Jasmin Simpson, 39, is deaf, blind and has lupus. She overcame these formidable challenges to earn a master’s degree in social work at Gallaudet University. She now works as a counsellor at the Canadian Hearing Society. But her education was costly. Because of her disabilities, it took her eight years instead of the usual five to complete her two degrees. She graduated with a student debt 60 per cent higher than a non-disabled student. That didn’t seem fair to Simpson. So she launched a charter challenge. / Toronto Star
Parry Sound, ON, Canada
THE LIVING IS EASY AT BOB RUMBALL'S CAMP OF THE DEAF
Children gravitated to it like bees to nectar — a supersized slide at Bob Rumball Ontario Camp of the Deaf that promised the ride of their lives and a big splash when they landed in the lake at the bottom. The kids were having a ball. That’s what camp is all about for Markell Francis, 14, who has been coming to Ontario Camp of the Deaf for 10 years. “Camp is fun and it’s for the deaf community,” he said in ASL. / Toronto Star
Oxford, England
OXFORD TUBE SORRY FOR DEAF PASSENGER'S HUMILIATION
A bus company is investigating one of its drivers after a deaf woman claimed she was “humiliated” on a journey to Oxford. Sarah Chapman, of Witney, complained to Stagecoach after the incident on its Oxford Tube service on Monday. Mrs Chapman, who wears hearing aids and relies on lip-reading, said: “It was humiliating to be in a stand-off with the driver, him waving the phone in my face and insisting that I could hear while I repeatedly told him that I couldn’t." / The Oxford Times
Swindon, England
MMA: EVANS FIGHTS AGAINST THE ODDS
Swindon fighter Adam Evans has faced plenty of battles during his life, but the biggest could be yet to come after signing a contract with one of the country’s leading Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) companies. The 42-year-old has been deaf since he was 18 months old and experienced bullying during the early years of his life, as a result. This pushed Evans into taking up self-defense and martial arts at a young age. / Swindon Advertiser
London, England
HAWKEYE IS DEAF IN MATT FRACTION AND DAVID AJA'S SIGN-LANGUAGE ISSUE
Hawkeye will be struck temporarily deaf in a sign language issue of his solo series. Matt Fraction and David Aja's Hawkeye #19 was previewed by The New York Times. After being left with major ear damage after a fight, Clint Barton cannot hear in this Marvel Comics issue. The issue's speech bubbles are all blank, and it is filled out with sign language illustrations that are not translated. "If nothing else, it's an opportunity for hearing people to get a taste of what it might be like to be deaf," said Fraction. / Digital Spy
Lancashire, England
DEAF MUSICIAN NORMAN RAISES CHARITY SMILES
A profoundly deaf musician astounds audiences when he picks up his piano accordion and starts playing. Norman McLaren and his wife Elaine, 63, who is also deaf, have raised thousands for charity over the years and are now setting up their own organization to benefit adults and children with special needs. Using the latest technology, Norman, 67, can now play with confidence as a Bluetooth adapter that he wears around his neck links straight to his hearing aid. / Rossendale Free Press
Lancashire, England
800 DEAF CAMPERS ENJOY THIS YEAR'S SIGN CIRCLE FESTIVAL!
Eight hundred Deaf campers are today making their way home after enjoying this year’s Sign Circle camping festival, which was held in Longridge, Lancashire. Among this year’s attractions were a new ‘pub bus’ (above) improvised comedy (below), signed poetry, drama and media workshops, an outdoor cinema from the BSL Zone, dog show, mud wrestling, zorbing, and much, much more. / The Limping Chicken
Australia
NO JAIL TIME FOR MAN WHO ROBBED DEAF VICTIM
A Sebastopol man who held a deaf man’s arms back while a co-accused repeatedly hit him with a crushed bourbon can during a robbery received a six-month suspended sentence on Wednesday. Michael Dawson, 21, pleaded guilty to robbing the victim of a 10-pack of bourbon cans on June 11, 2013, after being refused alcohol, along with the underage co-accused, after producing fake identification. / The Northern Daily Leader
Brisbane, Australia
BEING BLIND AND DEAF DOESN'T STOP THIS PHOTOGRAPHER FROM PRACTICING HIS ART
Brenden Borrellini has been deaf and blind for his entire life, but he hasn’t let that come in his way of doing what he loves. Brenden’s disability has presented many challenges over the years, but he has truly excelled and overcame incredible obstacles. Brenden studied at Special Education Unit at the Cavendish Road State School in Brisbane, where he became the first deaf and blind student to finish his high school education and attend university. / PetFlow Blog
Melbourne VIC, Australia
DEAF TENNIS PROFILE: JOHN LUI
Inspired to play after watching Wimbledon, John Lui now combines a coaching career with playing competitive deaf tennis at the highest level, a highlight being selection for the Deaflympics. “I just got hooked on [tennis by] hitting the ball against the wall and watching Pete Sampras at Wimbledon on TV," he said. / Tennis Australia
Malaysia
MUST LANGUAGE BE SPOKEN TO BE HEARD?
Imagine if you were told that your mother tongue is not a “real” language, but merely a shadow of one. This is what many deaf communities face when it comes to sign language. According to the World Federation of the Deaf, some 70 million deaf people around the world say that sign language is their first language. Despite this, the common misconception is that sign language is a crude imitation or ‘inferior’ to spoken languages such as English. / The Star
Ghana
STATE SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF IS RE-NAMED
The State School for the Deaf at Adjei Kojo, near Tema, was on Thursday re-named Dr Seth Tetteh Ocloo School for the Deaf, in honour of its founder. The school, which was established in 1966 by Dr Ocloo, is one of the special public schools in the country to educate students with hearing impairment. Dr Ocloo, who was born in 1932, lost his hearing in 1952 when he contracted cerebro spinal meningitis. / Citifmonline
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Macon, GA
RETIRED TEACHER LETS HER HANDS DO THE TALKING
The guest speaker at the Centerville Rotary meeting last week was one of their own -- new member Erin Kitchens, who spoke about growing up with deaf parents and her work as an interpreter for the deaf. Erin learned sign language at home. Both of her parents were deaf and communicated by sign language. Her father died when Erin was only 8, so at an early age she had to become an adult. / The Sun News
Huntington, WV
THREE GIRLS GRADUATE FROM LISTENING, LANGUAGE, LEARNING PROGRAM
A special program at Marshall University is helping children with profound hearing loss learn to communicate through speech. It's the first program of its kind in the state, and today was an extra special one for three young ladies who have spent the past several years there. It's graduation day for Clara Johnson, Ella Quisenberry and Rylee Collins. / WCHS
Gate City, VA
CAN YOU HEAR ME ROAR? HEARING IMPLANT AWARENESS GROUP TO HOST GATHERING AT ZOO
When Sarah Ball's family decided to try the cochlear implant procedure, her father Shannon says somewhere around 6 percent of hearing-impaired people were being offered the potentially life-changing implants. In an effort to see that number rise, Ball founded Waiting to Hear, an outreach organization designed to provide information awareness about these implants. On Aug. 8, Waiting to Hear will host its first event to raise cochlear implant awareness at the Creation Kingdom Zoo in Gate City, Va. / Johnson City Press
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Eden Prairie, MN
STARKEY HEARING AID FOUNDER BECOMES MINNESOTA BILLIONAIRE
Since founding Starkey Hearing Technologies Inc. more than 40 years ago, William Austin has turned the Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based company into the world’s fifth-largest hearing-aid manufacturer. The company had $840 million in revenue in 2012, according to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, making Austin, the company’s chief executive officer and sole shareholder, a billionaire. / Business Week
Washington, DC
UNIVERSITY TRAINS STUDENTS TO ADVOCATE FOR DEAF PEOPLE WORLDWIDE
There are an estimated 360 million deaf people around the world. Rue Winiarzyk is one of them. Growing up in Canada, she attended a school for deaf students, enjoying the advantages of living in a society attuned to the meeting the needs of its disabled citizens. However, she soon learned her experience is far from the reality for deaf people around the world. / Voice of America