Jennifer Tandoc - Deaf Artist & Photographer

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf Artist and Photographer, Jennifer Tandoc of Philippines.

Jennifer Tandoc is a professional artist, photographer and very talent that strives to create art that represents the Deaf community.



Tandoc says "Over the years, My art work has drawn a lot of positive attention. One of my dream is to become famous and successful as an artist and also, I fell in love with photography the minute my Dad gave me an old Kinolta Minolta. Photography became my passion!"

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Filmed and Edited by Danielle Graybill.



The Daily Moth is a new ASL radio show, delivers news in video using ASL. The Deaf host, Alex Abenchuchan, covers trending news stories and Deaf topics. The video shows of artist and photographer Jennifer Tandoc, each piece of art takes hours and hours of work. There's something hidden in all of her designs.

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Check out and LIKE her artist page and LIKE her photography page. Jennifer Tandoc Artist and Photographer! Visit her site: http://jtandocphotography.com

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#The Daily Moth -- #Deaf Business -- #Deaf Artists -- #Deaf Photographers

Deaf and Dying at the Ottawa Hospital

Deaf News: Deaf and dying: How a volunteer team brings palliative care comfort through communication in the capital of Canada.

OTTAWA -- Ottawa Citizen: The first experience Monica Elaine Campbell had with palliative care was helping a woman who had lost her ability to speak because of throat cancer.

Campbell, profoundly Deaf since birth, is an excellent lip reader and staff at an Ottawa Hospital asked if she could interpret the dying woman’s words. The woman had been communicating with paper and pen, but now was too weak even to do that.

“I was very hesitant. Then I thought, well, the least I could do is give it a try,” said Campbell, who is able to speak despite never having heard a word herself. “I put my hand on her right arm and said, ‘I’ve never done this before. I will try my best.”

WATCH: Video with CC - Ottawa Citizen.

Campbell leaned close as the woman mouthed her words. Campbell repeated it back and had the woman nod yes if she had understood correctly. She spent five hours with the woman, relaying messages between her and her family and the medical team. She was able to interpret about 85 per cent of what the woman told her.

“I came away a different person,” Campbell said. “I was very touched by the experience.”

The dying woman had not been Deaf, but the experience got Campbell thinking about the communication needs of people like herself: the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. A few years later, Campbell was asked to help a Deaf friend who was about to receive bad news about her cancer diagnosis.

“I didn’t know much about palliative care, but she was struggling with her terminal illness,” Campbell said. “I thought, my goodness, what if that was me? I thought, I should talk to my Deaf friends about death and dying and what our experiences have been.”

Those conversations led Campbell and her friend, sign language interpreter Christine Wilson, to start up the Ottawa Deaf Palliative Care Team, a group of volunteers that provide end-of-life care for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and their families. In 1999, she enrolled in palliative care courses at Algonquin College with two Deaf colleagues (the Deaf use a capital D to refer to the sub-culture of people who communicate with sign language; “Hard of Hearing” are those who have lost some or most of the hearing but can still use some speech, sometimes augmented with sign language; the “Deafened” or “Oral Deaf” have lost some or all of their hearing, but either learned to speak before their deafness or, like Campbell, learned to speak despite it.) Read More at Ottawa Citizen.

Deaf Woman Found Burned On The Street

Deaf News: Police: Woman found burned on Dale Street in Rochester.

ROCHESTER, NY -- Rochester Police say that a woman was found burned on Dale Street on Sunday, and the incident is being investigated as a suicide attempt.

News10NBC does not normally report on suicides, but many people in the area had questions about what happened on Sunday in broad daylight.

Officers say they were called to a home on Dale Street around, where they found a woman on fire in a field located on a empty lot of the street.

The woman, reportedly somewhere between 40 and 50 years of age, was transported to Strong Memorial Hospital, where she is in guarded condition.

Tony Alonzo Thompson- a neighbor of the woman- was among those who found her. He was walking around the neighborhood when he found her, and immediately called 911.

"I'm trying to tell her, 'ma'am, it's gonna be alright.' I'm telling her it's gonna be alright. It's going to be alright.... but I'm crying because I knew her."

"She's looking right at," he said, "She's Deaf... and she pointed. She's naked, her pants are down to her ankles... and she was smoking."

Holly Mortensen, who lives across from the field where the woman was found, is still in shock over what happened.

"That's a little too close to home, that's my first reaction."

Mortensen was awakened by the police and firefighters that had arrived in the neighborhood, and when she looked outside, she saw one of her neighbors on fire.

"She wasn't moving, she was just laying there at the middle of the field," she recalls, "The EMTs put a respirator on her, or a resuscitator on her."

Fire and police have confirmed the event is now being investigated as a suicide attempt and that there is no danger to the public. Because of the sensitivity of the situation, News10NBC will not be releasing the name of the woman.

Deaf News: Deaf and dying: How a volunteer team brings palliative care comfort through communication in the capital of Canada.

OTTAWA -- Ottawa Citizen: The first experience Monica Elaine Campbell had with palliative care was helping a woman who had lost her ability to speak because of throat cancer.

Campbell, profoundly Deaf since birth, is an excellent lip reader and staff at an Ottawa Hospital asked if she could interpret the dying woman’s words. The woman had been communicating with paper and pen, but now was too weak even to do that.

“I was very hesitant. Then I thought, well, the least I could do is give it a try,” said Campbell, who is able to speak despite never having heard a word herself. “I put my hand on her right arm and said, ‘I’ve never done this before. I will try my best.”

WATCH: Video with CC - Ottawa Citizen.

Campbell leaned close as the woman mouthed her words. Campbell repeated it back and had the woman nod yes if she had understood correctly. She spent five hours with the woman, relaying messages between her and her family and the medical team. She was able to interpret about 85 per cent of what the woman told her.

“I came away a different person,” Campbell said. “I was very touched by the experience.”

The dying woman had not been Deaf, but the experience got Campbell thinking about the communication needs of people like herself: the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. A few years later, Campbell was asked to help a Deaf friend who was about to receive bad news about her cancer diagnosis.

“I didn’t know much about palliative care, but she was struggling with her terminal illness,” Campbell said. “I thought, my goodness, what if that was me? I thought, I should talk to my Deaf friends about death and dying and what our experiences have been.”

Those conversations led Campbell and her friend, sign language interpreter Christine Wilson, to start up the Ottawa Deaf Palliative Care Team, a group of volunteers that provide end-of-life care for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and their families. In 1999, she enrolled in palliative care courses at Algonquin College with two Deaf colleagues (the Deaf use a capital D to refer to the sub-culture of people who communicate with sign language; “Hard of Hearing” are those who have lost some or most of the hearing but can still use some speech, sometimes augmented with sign language; the “Deafened” or “Oral Deaf” have lost some or all of their hearing, but either learned to speak before their deafness or, like Campbell, learned to speak despite it.) Read More at Ottawa Citizen.

Treatment of Deaf Couple at Wendy’s Drive Thru

Deaf News: Treatment of Deaf couple at Wendy's sparks outrage in Texas.



AUSTIN, TX -- TWC News: A local Deaf couple recently visited the Wendy's at 305 West Slaughter Lane in South Austin for food. They handed a note to the employee with their order at the window. But instead of immediately getting the fries and burgers they requested, they got a handwritten message.



They say an employee handed it to them after the fast food restaurant didn't get their order right.



The couple feels they were mistreated while trying to use the drive-thru.



Elisa Vita said the message left a bad taste in her mouth.



"They gave me the note and I felt very upset about that. I felt like they looked at me as less than other people, as inferior to other people and it was really not a good feeling,” said Vita.



Vita posted an image of the message on Facebook.



"It really hit a nerve with people," said Vita.



Thousands have weighed in online sharing similar experiences at fast food restaurants nationwide. Vita said she spoke with the manager of the South Austin Wendy's who gave her some free meal coupons and was incredibly apologetic about the situation.



She doesn't feel like enough was done to make it right.



"I deserve the right to the same service and obviously Wendy's needs to provide more in-depth training that explicitly says everyone deserves to access the drive-thru," said Vita.



A University of Texas professor said fast food worker or not, it's best to just follow a Deaf person's lead when they're trying to communicate with you.



"They [Deaf People] are skilled at working with and interacting with people with whom they don't share a common language. Try not to become frustrated if you're the clerk," said Richard Meier, the Department of Linguistics chair at UT.



Accessibility issues for the Deaf expand far beyond the drive-thru. Faculty within UT's ASL Program are beginning to research them further.



"One problem is there may not be interpreters readily available or the interpreter may be available through a video link," said Meier. "So our question is, how well is this working?"



Meier and his colleagues plan on specifically looking at healthcare first. With such a large Deaf community based in Austin, many believe it's the perfect place to conduct such research. Many say there can never be too much emphasis placed on improving accessibility as it benefits everyone, not just the Deaf.



SOURCE



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Deaf Woman Loses Legal Battle To Be Juror

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf News: Deaf woman loses High Court bid to serve on jury in Australia, claims “a smack in the face” for the Deaf community.



BRISBANE, AU -- The Independent: The High Court in Australia has ruled to deny a woman the chance to become the country’s first Deaf jury member, a decision she later described as “a smack in the face” for the Deaf community.



In 2012, a registrar told Gaye Lyons from Queensland she should be excused from jury duty as a sign language interpreter could not be sworn into the conference room, according to state law.



The 69-year-old can lip read but needs an interpreter to communicate, and decided to take her case against the Queensland government to the High Court.

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The court decided to uphold state law and said the presence of an interpreter in a deliberation room would cause “an incurable irregularity” which could affect the outcome of a case, resulting in the dismissal of Ms Lyons’ appeal.



Queensland attorney general Yvette D’Ath said the confidentiality of jury deliberations and the right to a fair trial were “among the most fundamental tenets of Australia’s justice system”, according to AP Australia.



"We're the same as everybody else, we're human, we have kids, we go to work, we drive cars, we pay mortgages - I was just fuming because I could not have equal access to this," Ms Lyons told reporters outside court.



"Why should the powers that be decide what's right for me, why should they decide what I can and can't do? It just made me livid, I was seething about the whole thing.”



Ms Lyons has repeatedly cited her detailed interest in the law and said jury duty was “something I really wanted to take part in”.



"After five years of struggle, just fighting for access for the Australian Deaf community, it felt like a slap in the face.”



"For them [the High Court] to say that interpreters could not relay information accurately, that was the living end, that was the last straw for me. Deaf people should not be treated differently. The High Court does not see that,” she added.



In 2011, a Deaf woman served on an inquest jury in the United Kingdom after several legal challenges found Deaf people can fully comprehend courtroom discourse and jury deliberations through interpreters.



Exemptions for Deaf people carrying out jury service in criminal trials were removed in Ireland and the UK after legal challenges during the 2000s. In the United States, they have been serving on juries since 1979.



New Zealand is another country where sign language interpreters are employed by courts to help Deaf jurors contribute to trials.



SOURCE

Gallaudet Presidential Inauguration Celebration

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf News: Gallaudet University celebrates the first Deaf woman to serve as its president in the United States history.

WASHINGTON -- USA Today: About two weeks after she arrived on the campus of Gallaudet University last January, Roberta Cordano learned how the place works: The blizzard known as “Snowzilla” hit, knocking out power to much of the campus.

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Cordano, the school’s incoming president, invited 13 families to stay in her on-campus house overnight, where the next morning they produced a huge communal meal. When students realized that a school-issued emergency message didn’t include an American Sign Language (ASL) version, they produced one themselves, complete with captions.



“They really set the gold standard for establishing bilingual communication,” Cordano said. “There is no other place that I have experienced that would just delve into something, take care of things, figure it out.”



On Friday, Cordano’s appointment becomes official as Gallaudet, the world's only liberal arts university for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students, inaugurates her as its first Deaf female president.

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The move follows decades of political upheaval at the school, where over the past 30 years students have fought to give Deaf educators and students more control.



Established during the Lincoln administration in 1864, Gallaudet didn’t get its first Deaf president until the Reagan administration, 124 years later, in 1988 and only after raucous protests closed down the campus. The “Deaf President Now” protests, stretching over eight days, forced Gallaudet's board to name its first Deaf president, I. King Jordan, who served for 18 years.



In 2006, more protests erupted after the board named Provost Jane Fernandes to replace Jordan. As in 1988, students blocked the main gates of the campus, and “Deaf President Now” morphed into “Better President Now.” Though all three finalists in 2006 were Deaf, students feared that Fernandes might not be their strongest advocate. Some wanted a candidate who had grown up Deaf and relied solely on ASL - Fernandes had learned to sign when she was young and could communicate well by speaking or by signing, The Washington Post reported at the time. The board eventually named Robert Davila to replace Jordan.



The power struggles are actually the natural result of the linguistic issues the Deaf community has experienced for more than a century, Cordano said.



“It took 100 years here in the (United) States until American Sign Language was recognized as a language, just like English, having its own grammatical structure, its own rules, all the linguistic markers you would find in any other language,” she said. “What’s fascinating is that it took 100 years for us to change the perspective from, ‘Oh, it’s just a bunch of gestures,’ to actually seeing it’s a legitimate language.”



From there, she said, it was a short step to political activism and a push for self-determination. Understanding Deaf Culture, she said, made outsiders realize that Deaf people have something worth protecting: “If you have a language, then surely there must be a culture - there must be literature. And of course we realized the Deaf community has culture and literature and storytelling. And from there that’s been followed by the civil rights movement.” ... Read More at USA Today.

Deaf Woman Refused Service At Dunkin Donuts

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf News: Massachusettsians show support after Deaf woman is refused service at Dunkin Donuts drive-thru.



FRAMINGHAM, MA -- A Deaf woman who was outraged by the way a Dunkin Donuts employee treated her is getting support from her community.



Jessica Sanzillo said she's a frequent customer at a Framingham Dunkin Donuts and uses a texting app to order through the drive-thru.



But when she drove up one day, she was refused service because she wouldn't use the speaker. On Sunday, Sanzillo and several others went through that drive-thru and ordered like a Deaf person would.



They hope this sends a message to others.

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"To see, to get them the experience of people that work at Dunkin Donuts. To know what it's like for when a Deaf person is going to come through the drive-thru and how to approach that better in the future,” Sanzillo told FOX25 through an interpreter Friday.



Hearing people and other who have Deaf families members came out to the rally as well.



"As a parent of a Deaf child, I would never want William to be excluded from anything and so thinking of him wanting to get a cup of coffee later in life and being told he couldn't go through the drive thru like everybody else really upset me,” one parent said.



Dunkin Donuts did apologize for that initial incident and said the employee involved has been fired.



SOURCE



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What It's Like To Be Deaf On University Campus

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf News: Students face challenges as Kirsten Pribula talks about her experiences of being Deaf on campus in the United States..



ATHENS, OH -- The Post: At age 23, Kirsten Pribula heard a water sprinkler for the first time. She stood in the middle of College Green for a few minutes trying to preserve the moment and remember the sound.



Pribula lost her hearing between the ages of 3 and 4 due to autoimmune inner ear disease. AIED is a progressive hearing loss condition caused when the immune system attacks the inner ear, according to the American Hearing Research Foundation.



Pribula underwent cochlear implant surgery - a surgery where a device that improves hearing is placed in the inner ear - when she was 8 years old. The surgery allows her to hear partially, but Pribula still relies heavily on lip reading and interpreters, she said.

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In group conversations, Pribula said she often needs an interpreter because it is hard to keep up with the back-and-forth nature of the setting.



“But with one-on-one conversations, I do really well because … I can read lips well,” Pribula said.



Despite the problems she faces because of her hearing loss, she still chose to come to Ohio University. Pribula was also looking at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., the only university in the nation designed specifically to eliminate barriers for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students, but Gallaudet did not offer Pribula the major she wanted to pursue.



Pribula, a junior studying graphic design, thought she was the only student who is Deaf on campus, but according to Carey Busch, the assistant dean of student accessibility, there are between 15 and 18 students on Ohio University’s Athens campus that are Deaf or Hard of Hearing. The group makes up less than one-tenth of a percent of the campus’ student population.



Although Pribula often feels overlooked by the general student body, there are some offices at OU actively working to accommodate students, who are Deaf, in and out of the classroom... Read The Full Story.

Deaf Rape Victim Dies in Acid Attack

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf News: Deaf & mute rape victim dies in acid attack in West Bengal - English Subtitles.



KRISHNAGAR, WB -- A 28-year-old Deaf and mute woman of a village in Nadia district died of severe burns after an unidentified man threw acid on her while she wassleeping, police said today.



The woman, who was allegedly raped last month by an unidentified man of her village, was sleeping in her house late last night at Betai Natunpara village when acid was thrown at her through an open window, Nadia SP S R Jhajharia said.

Suffering from severe burns, she was first taken to a hospital at Tehatta from where she was referred to a hospital at Krishnagar, the district headquarters, he said.



The woman succumbed to her burn injuries shortly after she was admitted to the hospital, Jhajharia said, adding her body has been sent for a post mortem.



The family is suspecting the hand of a villager who allegedly raped her last month and asked her not to make a police complaint about the crime, the SP said.



But the woman did file a police complaint following which a spot inquiry was conducted by the police a week ago, he added.



SOURCE



Times Of India's Official YouTube Channel by Culture Machine Media Pvt Ltd.

Deaf Woman Sues Taco Bell Over Drive-Thru

VIDEO [CC] - Deaf News: Deaf New Jersey woman sues Taco Bell over drive-thru orders.



TRENTON, NJ -- A Deaf Atlantic City woman who primarily communicates in sign language is suing Taco Bell, saying she found it difficult, if not impossible, to order two tacos at the fast-food chain's drive-thru window.



Gina Cirrincione said in her federal lawsuit that on Jan. 11, she wrote her order on a slip of paper and handed it to an employee at the drive-thru pickup window at a Taco Bell in Pleasantville, New Jersey.



Her video of the exchange, provided to The Associated Press by her lawyer, showed an employee trying to explain that orders are placed at the start of the drive-thru.

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"I will do it this one time," he then said. "I want you to understand me, one time. After that, no more. After that, no more. Come inside. OK, is that fair?"



On March 15, Cirrincione said, she wrote her order on a slip of paper and handed it to a drive-thru employee at a Taco Bell in Atlantic City. The note was returned and the window was shut without the order or an explanation, she said. She said she entered the store and was ignored.



Also see more: Taco Bell Complains About Deaf Customers



Taco Bell's drive-thru system requires a customer to hear and speak, making it inaccessible to the Deaf in violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act, the lawsuit claims.



Taco Bell spokeswoman Laura Nedbal said in a statement Friday to the AP that the California-based company had not yet received the lawsuit so could not comment on it. However, she added, "Taco Bell has a fundamental policy to respect all of our customers and employees, and we are committed to maintaining an environment free of discrimination or harassment."



Cirrincione wants Taco Bell to develop a policy to consider the needs of Deaf customers and to train employees about their rights. She also is seeking punitive and compensatory damages.



"With today's technology and the sophistication of Taco Bell, there is no excuse that their drive-thrus cannot be accessible," said attorney Eric Baum of The Eisenberg & Baum Law Center For The Deaf and Hard of Hearing, who is representing Cirrincione.



SOURCE



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Deaf Sound Artist Christine Sun Kim Interview

VIDEO [CC] - Exclusive Interview: How Christine Sun Kim, Deaf Sound Artist, Hears Everything.



The Daily Beast: Christine Sun Kim’s work is an expression of the spaces between sound and silence the many dimensions that are overlooked simply because no one can hear them.



For artist Christine Sun Kim, sound has many personalities. The Master of Fine Arts-holding TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) fellow, who has exhibited at Museum of Modern Art, held residencies at the Whitney Museum and most recently was guest artist at the MIT Media Lab, is challenging conventional ideas about sound through her art.

On a sleepy Sunday in Moabit, Berlin, I meet Kim, a petite 34-year-old with dyed blond hair tightly pulled back. Deaf since she was born, Kim exudes an energy that belies her silence, greeting me with a hug and kiss, before darting into the kitchen to make tea. We sit down and Skype to communicate, but there’s no need for video.



For the past seven years, Kim has lived between New York City and Berlin. But it was not until 2008, during an arts residency in gritty Berlin, that she began to consider sound as her next medium.



“I noticed how sound art was a thing and became intrigued about the concept. I am always drawn to conceptual art and the ideas behind a piece or installation,” she said.



“For me, sound had always been an idea an intangible space that separated me from others so I was curious about how art could transcend sound and vice versa.”



Kim, who was a visual artist at the time, gradually realized that she wanted to explore sound. And it totally freaked her out... Read more: http://thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/06/01/how-christine-sun-kim-deaf-sound-artist-hears-everything.html



Follow Christine Sun Kim:

Subscribe - https://vimeo.com/csk

Twitter - https://twitter.com/chrisunkim

Official site - http://christinesunkim.com

Wikipedia - http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Christine_Sun_Kim

Deaf Pilot Gets License In Ohio

Exclusive: Deaf woman pilot gets license that not going to stop her from taking to the sky.



LANCASTER, OH - Learning to fly is no easy feat, but Lancaster native Jenny Hurst was not going to let being Deaf stop her from taking to the sky.



From a young age, Hurst dreamed of being a pilot like her grandfather, a captain in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. She has always been drawn to flying, she said, and before 9/11, one of her favorite things to do was to watch planes take off from Port Columbus International Airport. In her younger years, she went as far as telling boyfriends plane-watching was her preferred way to spend a date.



Aware of that desire, Hurst’s husband of 17 years, Adam, looked into flight lessons at Sundowner Aviation at the Fairfield County Airport for his wife, who has been Deaf since the age of 2. Officials there agreed to take her on, and one year later, after fitting in two to three hours of flight instruction per week, Hurst got her pilot license. She took her first solo flight July 18.



On Sunday, Hurst took her family up in the plane for the first time, although the family of six could not all fit in one flight. Hurst hopes to become registered in instrument flight rules so she can be allowed to fly larger planes that will fit her entire family.



Another use for the pilot license may be flying materials from suppliers to Hammock Gear, the backpacking outfitter the Hursts own in Lancaster. While Hurst would love to be a pilot for hire, she said she is still exploring her limits as a Deaf pilot and her abilities with communication... Read more: lancastereaglegazette.com/story/news/local/2015/03/24/deaf-pilot-gets-license-lancaster/

TV Producer Arrested For Murder Of Deaf Sister

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO [CC] - Talk-Show producer arrested in connection with death of Deaf, partially blind sister.



LOS ANGELES - Television producer Jill Blackstone was released from custody Wednesday after her arrest in connection to the death of her Deaf, partially blind sister, authorities said.



About 12:40 p.m. Saturday, the Los Angeles Fire Department was called to a home in the 12000 block of Landale Street in Studio City, said Los Angeles police Lt. Bob Toledo.



Blackstone’s sister Wendy Blackstone, 49, was found unconscious in an enclosed garage where carbon monoxide had filled the room, Toledo said. A dead animal also was found in the garage.

Paramedics tried to resuscitate Wendy Blackstone, but she was pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of her death has not been determined pending further investigation, including toxicology tests, according to the coroner’s office.



Jill Blackstone, 52, was arrested Monday night on suspicion of first-degree murder, according to arrest records.



A suicide note recovered at the home was believed to have been penned by Jill Blackstone, not her late sister, according to the website TMZ, which first reported the arrest.



Blackstone was released from custody about 5 p.m. Wednesday, according to jail records. Prosecutors have not filed charges against her, Toledo said.



The Los Angeles County district attorney's office did not respond to an after-hours request for comment. Jill Blackstone also did not immediately respond to several requests for comment.



She has produced numerous television shows, including the “Rosie O’Donnell Show” and the “Sally Jessy Raphael Show,” according to her personal website. She also produced a 1993 episode of “The Jerry Springer Show,” according to the Internet Movie Database. SOURCE

Deaf Woman's Cat Seized By Animal Control Officers

SHELBY, NC. - 'My heart is just broken': Deaf woman's cat seized. A basket of cat toys sits forlornly on the carpet in Cindie Steever's apartment in Shelby along with an empty food bowl.



Steever said her small apartment feels barren and empty without Costello. For Steever, Costello was more than a pet. She was her ears. Steever can't hear a knock on the door. A ringing phone goes unnoticed. She speaks with the help of her fingers and an interpreter. Steever, who is Deaf, told The Star her small gray and white cat would alert her to sounds around her home. Through her interpreter, she described Costello as her "champion hearing cat."



Last week, Costello was taken by Cleveland County Animal Control officers when they were called to her home to remove some kittens. Steever's anguish cannot only be seen in her fingers, but her face. "I relied on her," she said.



Jacquelyn Moore, Steever's friend and interpreter, said Steever felt intimidated by several people. "She thought she was being forced to give Costello up," Moore said. "She felt she didn't have a choice."



Steever, who got Costello in 2011, said the cat recently had three kittens. Her landlord told her she had to find homes for the babies but that she could keep Costello. She was given a week. Read more: http://www.shelbystar.com/news/local/my-heart-is-just-broken-deaf-woman-s-cat-seized-1.64712