“I’ve been profoundly impacted by Up with People, which exposed me to Deafness, Deaf Culture, and American Sign Language.”
While the music was always a passion, everything changed when I met my first Deaf student during a performance at a Deaf and Blind school. This encounter changed my life path, and I’ve been a teacher for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing for 40 years now. I have shared my experiences of Up with People with them, and how it broadened my perspective of the World.
I’ve been profoundly impacted by Up with People, which exposed me to Deafness, Deaf Culture, and American Sign Language. I met and conversed with my first Deaf student, when we performed at a Deaf and Blind school, and I knew at that moment that my life path would forever change. Every year that I have taught, I have told my Deaf and Hard of Hearing students that they can change the world. They have something so unique to share, that only they can distribute it.
You can learn about different cultures and places from books, but traveling to those places and experiencing them firsthand gives you a perspective that forever changes you. I want those new experiences for my Deaf and Hard of Hearing students.So, I wrote a book, ” A Boy Named Broccoli” , about my experiences with Up with People, as well as how my students have changed my life. I want to use the proceeds from the book to enrich their lives with travel.