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Program to open world of communication for deaf teen » Merrimack Valley » EagleTribune.com, North Andover, MA
Kelly Gomez will go to the Grand Canyon to see its magnificence while learning to teach the importance of hearing.
Gomez and 16 other teenagers from across the United States with varying degrees of hearing loss will participate in Hear the World Sound Academy in the Grand Canyon next month. They will learn how to educate others about the role sound and hearing plays in everyday life and the importance of protecting hearing at every age.
Students will collect sound data for the National Park Service and launch an online campaign to educate the public about hearing and hearing loss. They will also develop a podcast to be used as a learning tool by the National Park Service.
Gomez is thrilled about attending the program to learn tools and erase misconceptions about people with hearing impediments. She's pretty psyched too about the rafting and hiking in the Diamond Down section of the Grand Canyon.
Gomez' mother, Jackie discovered her daughter had a hearing impairment after an evaluation in preschool. Gomez was sent to Children's Hospital in Boston for testing.
"When the doctors told me to sit down, I knew it wasn't good," Jackie Gomez said.
Her daughter had moderate to severe hearing loss.
"It was the worst day of my life," Gomez said. "I still get teary-eyed talking about it, because it was very emotional for me. I kept asking myself 'Why? How?'"
Today, Kelly Gomez has a 95 percent hearing loss on her left ear and five percent loss on her right ear. She uses one hearing aid and has one cochlear implant on her left ear.
"I've the best of both worlds, because the silence I get is mine and mine alone and I'm grateful I can hear the birds singing. But it's been hard. A lot of times, no one understands," she said.
While Kelly Gomez can hear with the help of devices, she speaks clearly and can also read lips.
"People tell me that I'm not deaf enough because I can speak, but that's one of the misconceptions," she said.
Kelly Gomez has not let her hearing disability slow her down. She is an incoming senior at Newton North High School, home of the EDCO Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, the oldest secondary level program for the Deaf in Massachusetts founded in 1973.
At the school, she is in the integrated classroom placement with a public school teacher and a sign language interpreter. She also receives support services such as speech and language therapy and counseling.
She volunteered in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina doing carpentry work. She has competed in the Academic Bowl at Newton North against other deaf schools at Gallaudet University for two years with her team coming in second and third place respectively. The Newton North event made it to the national Academic Bowl where they came in 32nd place.
She is adviser For the Junior National Association for the Deaf and in Lawrence she has been part of the Spicket River cleanup and volunteers at Cor Unum meal center sponsored by St. Patrick parish.
She has been a volunteer with the Shared Reading Saturdays, where she reads books to children who are deaf and hard of hearing by using sign language. Kelly and her mother had participated in the program by Gallaudet University Regional Center at Northern Essex Community College.
"She does so much, I'm so proud of her," Jackie Gomez said.
Kelly Gomez works at Market Basket supermarket in North Andover.
During her spare time, she enjoys going to the movies, listening to reggaeton and pop music, and playing softball with the South Lawrence East team.
In the future, Kelly Gomez plans to study psychology and philosophy at Rochester Institute of Technology. At the same time she plans to be an advocate for the disabled.
"My hearing loss has made me a better person and has made me realize exactly what I have to lose if I don't step up my game and prove people wrong," Kelly Gomez said.
Kelly Gomez will go to the Grand Canyon to see its magnificence while learning to teach the importance of hearing.
Gomez and 16 other teenagers from across the United States with varying degrees of hearing loss will participate in Hear the World Sound Academy in the Grand Canyon next month. They will learn how to educate others about the role sound and hearing plays in everyday life and the importance of protecting hearing at every age.
Students will collect sound data for the National Park Service and launch an online campaign to educate the public about hearing and hearing loss. They will also develop a podcast to be used as a learning tool by the National Park Service.
Gomez is thrilled about attending the program to learn tools and erase misconceptions about people with hearing impediments. She's pretty psyched too about the rafting and hiking in the Diamond Down section of the Grand Canyon.
Gomez' mother, Jackie discovered her daughter had a hearing impairment after an evaluation in preschool. Gomez was sent to Children's Hospital in Boston for testing.
"When the doctors told me to sit down, I knew it wasn't good," Jackie Gomez said.
Her daughter had moderate to severe hearing loss.
"It was the worst day of my life," Gomez said. "I still get teary-eyed talking about it, because it was very emotional for me. I kept asking myself 'Why? How?'"
Today, Kelly Gomez has a 95 percent hearing loss on her left ear and five percent loss on her right ear. She uses one hearing aid and has one cochlear implant on her left ear.
"I've the best of both worlds, because the silence I get is mine and mine alone and I'm grateful I can hear the birds singing. But it's been hard. A lot of times, no one understands," she said.
While Kelly Gomez can hear with the help of devices, she speaks clearly and can also read lips.
"People tell me that I'm not deaf enough because I can speak, but that's one of the misconceptions," she said.
Kelly Gomez has not let her hearing disability slow her down. She is an incoming senior at Newton North High School, home of the EDCO Program for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, the oldest secondary level program for the Deaf in Massachusetts founded in 1973.
At the school, she is in the integrated classroom placement with a public school teacher and a sign language interpreter. She also receives support services such as speech and language therapy and counseling.
She volunteered in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina doing carpentry work. She has competed in the Academic Bowl at Newton North against other deaf schools at Gallaudet University for two years with her team coming in second and third place respectively. The Newton North event made it to the national Academic Bowl where they came in 32nd place.
She is adviser For the Junior National Association for the Deaf and in Lawrence she has been part of the Spicket River cleanup and volunteers at Cor Unum meal center sponsored by St. Patrick parish.
She has been a volunteer with the Shared Reading Saturdays, where she reads books to children who are deaf and hard of hearing by using sign language. Kelly and her mother had participated in the program by Gallaudet University Regional Center at Northern Essex Community College.
"She does so much, I'm so proud of her," Jackie Gomez said.
Kelly Gomez works at Market Basket supermarket in North Andover.
During her spare time, she enjoys going to the movies, listening to reggaeton and pop music, and playing softball with the South Lawrence East team.
In the future, Kelly Gomez plans to study psychology and philosophy at Rochester Institute of Technology. At the same time she plans to be an advocate for the disabled.
"My hearing loss has made me a better person and has made me realize exactly what I have to lose if I don't step up my game and prove people wrong," Kelly Gomez said.
