DeafStone Services, Inc.

Rise Up by Andra Day ASL by Megg Rose

Every year March is designated Women's History Month by Presidential proclamation. The month is set aside to honor women's contributions in American history. Here are a few Deaf women who have broken barriers, paved the way and have and continue to make a difference in our community. They work tirelessly for access, for progress and change!! Hats off to you ALL. Thanks for your contributions and for being YOU!!

Shared from the Deaf Literacy Center - Tampa Bay Florida. Black Deaf Excellence! How many can you name???

An interview on the Feeling Through movie hosted by Whoopi Goldberg and featuring Actress, Marlee Matlin, Actor, Robert Tarango and Director, Doug Roland. The video is interpreted and captions are available. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4WkQK92B5c

SSP Training coming soon!!!

Amanda Gorman’s poem, The Hill we Climb done beautifully in ASL by a Deaf Interpreter, April Jackson! So visual!

This is awesome! Let's speak up NOW BEFORE the Super Bowl to have split screen of Wawa and whatever else they're showing on the screen!

* UPDATE * SSP Program * SSP services are now open to all DeafBlind individuals who would like to use SSP services in Pennsylvania. You do not have to have used CILP's services in the past. 10 Hours a Month = Free Please don't let them go to waste! Show elected officials there IS a need and you want more!!! Our goal is to have permanent funding by July 1!!! Contact [email protected] or 412-616-0061 v/text/facetime for more info.

It's official! Our new SSP Program is up and running! Contact [email protected] for questions or more info. The announcement below is also attached as a picture. Emergency Funding Will Allow Pennsylvania Support Service Provider (SSP) Services to Continue Pittsburgh, PA - January 11, 2021 - Emergency state funding granted to the PA Office for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing (ODHH) will allow Support Service Provider (SSP) services to continue across the state. ODHH will make this ...happen by working with DeafStone Services, Inc. to provide services to Western PA and with Keystone Deaf & Hard of Hearing Services (formerly Berks Deaf & Hard of Hearing Services) for Eastern PA. Both agencies are nonprofit organizations. A SSP is a specially trained individual who provides access to the community for people who are DeafBlind or Hard of Hearing with vision loss. SSPs guide and provide visual and environmental information so the DeafBlind or Hard of Hearing individual with vision loss can make their own informed decisions. Without a SSP program, DeafBlind or Hard of Hearing individuals with vision loss can be isolated, suffer from depression, and not have the same opportunities as others to participate in their community, society, and even their own lives. Some examples of when an SSP is used are to read mail, go grocery shopping, getting a haircut, going to the bank, shopping for clothes, recreation activities, attending events, and so much more. Starting the week of January 11, 2021 DeafBlind and Hard of Hearing individuals with vision loss will receive information from DeafStone Services (west) or Keystone (east) in order to register with either agency based on location. Those individuals will then be eligible to receive up to 10 hours of SSP services each month. SSPs will also be contacted to register with either agency. If you do not receive information directly from either agency, please reach out so they can see if you qualify to receive hours. This funding became available thanks to consumers speaking up and sharing their personal stories. It was also thanks to the ongoing efforts of advocacy groups, agencies, organizations, and government representatives from local to state level. This temporary funding is only one small step toward the goal of permanent funding within the state budget. Thank you to all involved!

This fundraiser ends tomorrow, Tues Dec 10. 70 hours of SSP services raised so far! $25 = 1 Hour of SSP Services Thank you all so much!!!

#DayOfGiving #GivingTuesday2020 #DayOfGiving2020 Alarm clock ringing to remind everyone that today is the day! Today is The Day of Giving! It's finally time! #GivingTuesday is a day to celebrate joy - to give what we have to help change our local communities, and the world! Everyone has something to contribute. How are you giving back today?... For every $25 donated, DeafStone Services will be able to provide 1 hour of SSP (Support Service Provider) services to a DeafBlind individual! See more

CDI (Certified Deaf Interpreter) Training coming to Ohio Please see flyer for more information.

#Repost @westmorelandmuseum During this time of political polarization and pandemic culture, the message of the billboard, as expected, will have m...any different interpretations but the goals in creating this piece are: First, LOVE in American Sign Language (ASL) is recognizable because of the similarity of the signed letters to the orthography of the word i.e. the L in ASL looks very much like the letter L; the O in ASL is similar to the letter O and so on. This creates a small but profound connection to people who are D/deaf ASL speakers. By simply making the connection of literacy in two languages, we open up a small opportunity to learn a different culture. As a person immersed in Deaf and Mainstream Culture, it is important to me to point out the intersections of these cultures. Second, unlike having text, American Sign Language is an active and dynamic language. The effort to communicate in ASL requires conspicuous action and this action is implied when you see the images of the signed letters. The billboard, though a static 2D image, is activated in the presence of the different hand letter shapes. Similar to the word LOVE, while the word is a noun, it is felt only with action.- Fran Flaherty, @fcflaherty. Hear more from Diversity Billboard Art Project artist Fran Flaherty and fellow artist Edith Abeyta during a FREE virtual conversation on Thursday, Nov. 12, 7pm. The artists will be discussing their commissioned original works inspired by the theme Make Our Differences Our Strengths. The conversation will be moderated by lead artist for the project Sheila Cuellar-Shaffer, who will share insights about the conception of this public art campaign. RSVP to attend via the link in our bio! Fran Flaherty, LOVE, Diversity Billboard Art Project, 2020 #FranFlaherty #Love #DiversityBillboardArtProject #PublicArtProject #BillboardCampaign #Billboards #BillboardArt #TravelingExhibition #WestmorelandDiversityCoalition #LocalArtists #PghArtists #PittsburghArtists #WestmorelandCounty #MakeOurDifferencesOurStrengths

Join us for a FREE virtual conversation, Thursday, Nov.12, 7pm, between Edith Abeyta and Fran Flaherty, two of the artists selected for the Diversity Billboard ...Art Project. The artists will be discussing their commissioned original works inspired by the theme Make Our Differences Our Strengths. RSVP to attend--> http://ow.ly/trWG50Cbmw7 Top Left Photo Credit: Grace Roselli #pandorasboxxproject

The brilliant Deaf artist, Christine Sun Kim: In American Sign Language (ASL), we sign finish as a way to conjugate the past tense. When you sign eat finish, that means ate in English, write finish means wrote, and so on. For the sticker design, I used vote finish as my version of the English I voted stickers. By connecting the words together, the sticker also visually resembles how you would sign vote in ASL.

Please vote! No matter what! Thank you Juliette, Jay and PublicSource.org for writing and taking pictures for this story! It was a pleasure working with you! Also, thank you for participating and speaking out Richard McGann, Heather Schoenwald, Charles Shipley, Laura A Shipley, and Joe Drenth!

If you needed another reason to love The Mandalorian, this is advocacy done right!