ESU Hosts Sign Language Celebration Day

It did not matter that he never heard the sound his opponents made when they admitted defeat or that he had a hard time understanding instructions given at wrestling practice. Matt Hamill, “The Hammer,” a professional wrestler and boxer who was born deaf, earned three NCAA Division II National Championship titles in wrestling when he attended the Rochester Institute of Technology. After obtaining his associate degree, he went on to UFC.

The Sign Language Club at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania wants to tell Hamill’s story as a part of Sign Language Celebration Day, which will be held on April 25. “The Hammer,” a movie which will be shown at 7 p.m. on the Linden Quad, is a part of an all-day celebration.

Sign Language Celebration Day coincides with ESU’s annual Community on the Quad event, which will be held on the Linden Quad from 12 noon to 4 p.m., where the Sign Language Club will host a booth. Then, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. the club will host a dinner in the Hemlock Suites lounge, where members of the local community can mingle with the local deaf community.
“We are very excited for all of these events,” Jaclyn Kavanagh, a senior majoring in speech-language pathology from Long Pond, Pa., said. “We hope that each event can appeal to people who might not be aware of what the Sign Language Club is and what we do.”

All of the events are open to the general public and are free of charge.

“People should welcome the chance to learn from those with different experiences,” Kavanagh said. “Our club is happy to share this opportunity to interact with deaf people who are often overlooked and misunderstood in our hearing-dominant culture. We’re helping raise awareness, and that’s all we can hope to do.”

For more information contact Kavanagh at jkavanagh@live.esu.edu.

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