Macie McCallion

Recently, I decided to join the American Sign Language Club here at Stockton University.  I had joined multiple other clubs before making the decision to join American Sign Language Club.  I am currently a member of the Marine Science Club, C.L.A.W.S. (Collaborative Leaders Advocating Wellness at Stockton), Ping Pong Club, the Disney Association and now the American Sign Language Club.

I decided to join each of these organizations because I had a genuine interest in all of them.  However, there was more to the reason of why I joined the American Sign Language Club than just having an interest in the subject matter.  This past year, my grandfather developed a benign tumor on the cochlea of his good ear and he is now fully deaf.  I joined the American Sign Language club because I now understand what it’s like to have a communication barrier.  My ultimate goal is to become fluent in Sign Language.  This goal was inspired by my grandfather, but I wish to follow through with it because I think it is a huge asset to be able to speak through sign language.  I hope to inspire others in my family to learn how to use sign language and hopefully I will be able to teach my grandfather as well so it could ease the communication barrier between us.

I hope no one else in my family develops complete hearing loss but if they do I am confident that I will be more prepared. I believe sign language is a beautiful form of communication that should be more widely taught throughout our education systems.