Miss-Delectable
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Discussion : Extra EffortSeneca teen uses sign language to talk to deaf parents
Amy Harvat doesn't need to use her voice to communicate with her parents.
Roger and Linda Harvat were born with hearing loss and taught their daughter and sons how to use sign language to communicate with them when the children were very young.
"Growing up with parents that are deaf is sometimes a challenge. You can't just yell something at them and expect them to understand right away," said Amy, 18.
"You have to use sign language or talk slowly so they can read your lips."
"It's hard to explain what living with deaf parents is like because I don't have anything to compare it to," she added. "I've grown up with it and it's all I know."
Amy schedules her own dentist and doctor appointments, and she admits it can get frustrating to have to repeat herself, but she says she wouldn't change a thing about life at the Harvat home in Eastman.
She loves "hanging out" with her family - especially game nights, when Roger and Linda and their children play games such as Life on the Farm, euchre, Skippo and Uno.
"We're just a pretty normal family," Amy said.
It is because of Amy's upbeat attitude and her success at school despite the challenges she faces at home that she was named the La Crosse Tribune Extra Effort Award winner for Seneca High School.
"She comes from a good, strong family and sometimes forgets that they are just a little different than what we think as normal," school counselor Kayla Chambers said. "She just seemed the right fit for the honor. She doesn't feel sorry for herself and works hard."
Both Roger and Linda wear hearing aids, so Amy said they aren't deaf. They are able to communicate with a special phone as well as e-mail and texting.
"When my friends first found out about my parents, they thought it was weird but kind of cool. They thought it would be difficult to learn sign language at such an early age just to talk to my parents," Amy said. "But because I had to learn early, it's made my life easier to talk with my parents."
Some friends have asked Amy to teach them some simple signs so they could talk with her parents.
"After you think about it, yea, it might be hard to have parents that are deaf, but I wouldn't change it for the world. I love my parents and I wouldn't trade them for anything," Amy said.
"I guess in a way, having deaf parents has made me grow up sooner and it has gotten me ready for my future."
Amy is involved in Students Helping Area Resistance Efforts, Fight Against Corporate Tobacco, FFA, Spanish Club, Volleyball, People Actively Linked to Students and National Honor Society.
Amy plans to attend Western Technical College to study radiography and recently did a program shadow. She said she is now more interested than ever in becoming a radiographer.
"It was amazing," she said. "I helped take an X-ray. It was kind of cool."
Amy Harvat doesn't need to use her voice to communicate with her parents.
Roger and Linda Harvat were born with hearing loss and taught their daughter and sons how to use sign language to communicate with them when the children were very young.
"Growing up with parents that are deaf is sometimes a challenge. You can't just yell something at them and expect them to understand right away," said Amy, 18.
"You have to use sign language or talk slowly so they can read your lips."
"It's hard to explain what living with deaf parents is like because I don't have anything to compare it to," she added. "I've grown up with it and it's all I know."
Amy schedules her own dentist and doctor appointments, and she admits it can get frustrating to have to repeat herself, but she says she wouldn't change a thing about life at the Harvat home in Eastman.
She loves "hanging out" with her family - especially game nights, when Roger and Linda and their children play games such as Life on the Farm, euchre, Skippo and Uno.
"We're just a pretty normal family," Amy said.
It is because of Amy's upbeat attitude and her success at school despite the challenges she faces at home that she was named the La Crosse Tribune Extra Effort Award winner for Seneca High School.
"She comes from a good, strong family and sometimes forgets that they are just a little different than what we think as normal," school counselor Kayla Chambers said. "She just seemed the right fit for the honor. She doesn't feel sorry for herself and works hard."
Both Roger and Linda wear hearing aids, so Amy said they aren't deaf. They are able to communicate with a special phone as well as e-mail and texting.
"When my friends first found out about my parents, they thought it was weird but kind of cool. They thought it would be difficult to learn sign language at such an early age just to talk to my parents," Amy said. "But because I had to learn early, it's made my life easier to talk with my parents."
Some friends have asked Amy to teach them some simple signs so they could talk with her parents.
"After you think about it, yea, it might be hard to have parents that are deaf, but I wouldn't change it for the world. I love my parents and I wouldn't trade them for anything," Amy said.
"I guess in a way, having deaf parents has made me grow up sooner and it has gotten me ready for my future."
Amy is involved in Students Helping Area Resistance Efforts, Fight Against Corporate Tobacco, FFA, Spanish Club, Volleyball, People Actively Linked to Students and National Honor Society.
Amy plans to attend Western Technical College to study radiography and recently did a program shadow. She said she is now more interested than ever in becoming a radiographer.
"It was amazing," she said. "I helped take an X-ray. It was kind of cool."