Miss-Delectable
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Woman won't let deafness make her miss a step in life
When Marlee Matlin competed this spring on Dancing With the Stars, Antonia Mueller cheered for the award-winning deaf actress in the silence of her living room.
Born with 90 percent hearing loss, Mueller has been taking hip-hop, Latin and jazz lessons for six years at the Simply Dance Academy in Port St. Lucie.
The mother of four knows all about the counting, the cues and other extra things that deaf dancers must do to compensate because they cannot hear the music.
Though Matlin and her partner's performance on the TV contest won rave reviews, they were eliminated in April. To Mueller, Matlin's still a winner.
"That made me feel really, really good, and I would love to meet her someday," the 41-year-old Port St. Lucie woman said through the interpretation of her husband, Ronald. "She's a good example for the deaf."
So is Mueller.
The petite woman is not one to let deafness define her boundaries. Mueller seems bent on defying her disability and has won admiration among the hearing and non-hearing.
One of her recent triumphs was her first dance solo on June 14 at the Simply Dance Academy's annual recital.
For six months, she and her instructor, Jessica Pannozzo, worked to coordinate kicks, twists and turns with the choreography by counting the beats instead of hearing them.
Pannozzo was on new turf, too. She'd never worked with the deaf, nor did she know sign language.
Through much improvisation, constant practice and sheer will, the duo sculpted a collaboration that was evident on the day of the show. Although nervous, Mueller danced a spunky jazz number to Prince's Trust that left even her instructor astonished.
"Antonia gave me a whole different viewpoint about the deaf," Pannozzo said. "She taught me that anybody can do anything if they put their mind to it. I still can't believe she nailed every step."
Eleven years ago, Mueller was breaking another barrier as Indian River Community College's first deaf cheerleader.
She was 30 and a freshman, and she tried out for the squad like everyone else.
She learned the chants and dance routines through sign language and rarely missed a beat in rooting the basketball team to victory.
At the same time, she hoped to be an inspiration for her deaf son, Joey, then 7, and others like him in the stands.
In 1997, she told The Palm Beach Post: "If there's any other deaf person out in the crowd, I am hoping to be a good example for them to come out, to try and get involved. Don't just sit there because you're deaf.
"I don't want the hearing to say, 'That poor thing - she can't do anything.' I rebel. I get crazy. I get nuts. We (the deaf) don't want pity. We don't want mercy. We are in control of our lives."
Today, Mueller is still a part-time college student with another two years to earn her associate's degree in business. The responsibilities of wife and motherhood take precedence, but she's not complaining.
"Eventually, I want my own business," she said. "I want to teach the deaf in academics, sports or dance so they understand, won't be scared and give up."
According to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services of the Treasure Coast Inc., there are 90,000 hearing-impaired and 5,000 deaf people in the four-county area of Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties.
While providing hearing aids for needy children and adults, the nonprofit organization in Port St. Lucie also offers advocates, interpreters, video phones and sign language classes.
Ronald Mueller learned sign language from his wife.
Both graduated from Fort Pierce Westwood High School in 1984, but their romance began years later when she was a single mother of three. Married in 1997, the couple have a daughter, Theresa, 9, who is a dancer like her mother.
"I just felt like she was a very special woman," said Ronald, 42. "It didn't matter to me if she was deaf or not. She's one of a kind."
He turns to her and signs, "I love you for who you are."
"He's the best man in the world," she said.
Though Mueller has never been happier, she has never heard her children laugh or say, "I love you." Her husband made his wedding vows in sign language.
Mueller wishes more people would learn sign language and be more patient with the deaf and hearing-impaired.
She converses in scribbles with her doctor and dentist.
Meals are ordered by pointing at the menu.
Forget the drive-through window at fast-food restaurants.
"There's a lot of discrimination," she said. "People ignore the deaf. They take hearing for granted."
Still, there is one advantage.
"When I go to bed at night," Mueller said with a smile. "I never hear my husband snore."
When Marlee Matlin competed this spring on Dancing With the Stars, Antonia Mueller cheered for the award-winning deaf actress in the silence of her living room.
Born with 90 percent hearing loss, Mueller has been taking hip-hop, Latin and jazz lessons for six years at the Simply Dance Academy in Port St. Lucie.
The mother of four knows all about the counting, the cues and other extra things that deaf dancers must do to compensate because they cannot hear the music.
Though Matlin and her partner's performance on the TV contest won rave reviews, they were eliminated in April. To Mueller, Matlin's still a winner.
"That made me feel really, really good, and I would love to meet her someday," the 41-year-old Port St. Lucie woman said through the interpretation of her husband, Ronald. "She's a good example for the deaf."
So is Mueller.
The petite woman is not one to let deafness define her boundaries. Mueller seems bent on defying her disability and has won admiration among the hearing and non-hearing.
One of her recent triumphs was her first dance solo on June 14 at the Simply Dance Academy's annual recital.
For six months, she and her instructor, Jessica Pannozzo, worked to coordinate kicks, twists and turns with the choreography by counting the beats instead of hearing them.
Pannozzo was on new turf, too. She'd never worked with the deaf, nor did she know sign language.
Through much improvisation, constant practice and sheer will, the duo sculpted a collaboration that was evident on the day of the show. Although nervous, Mueller danced a spunky jazz number to Prince's Trust that left even her instructor astonished.
"Antonia gave me a whole different viewpoint about the deaf," Pannozzo said. "She taught me that anybody can do anything if they put their mind to it. I still can't believe she nailed every step."
Eleven years ago, Mueller was breaking another barrier as Indian River Community College's first deaf cheerleader.
She was 30 and a freshman, and she tried out for the squad like everyone else.
She learned the chants and dance routines through sign language and rarely missed a beat in rooting the basketball team to victory.
At the same time, she hoped to be an inspiration for her deaf son, Joey, then 7, and others like him in the stands.
In 1997, she told The Palm Beach Post: "If there's any other deaf person out in the crowd, I am hoping to be a good example for them to come out, to try and get involved. Don't just sit there because you're deaf.
"I don't want the hearing to say, 'That poor thing - she can't do anything.' I rebel. I get crazy. I get nuts. We (the deaf) don't want pity. We don't want mercy. We are in control of our lives."
Today, Mueller is still a part-time college student with another two years to earn her associate's degree in business. The responsibilities of wife and motherhood take precedence, but she's not complaining.
"Eventually, I want my own business," she said. "I want to teach the deaf in academics, sports or dance so they understand, won't be scared and give up."
According to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services of the Treasure Coast Inc., there are 90,000 hearing-impaired and 5,000 deaf people in the four-county area of Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties.
While providing hearing aids for needy children and adults, the nonprofit organization in Port St. Lucie also offers advocates, interpreters, video phones and sign language classes.
Ronald Mueller learned sign language from his wife.
Both graduated from Fort Pierce Westwood High School in 1984, but their romance began years later when she was a single mother of three. Married in 1997, the couple have a daughter, Theresa, 9, who is a dancer like her mother.
"I just felt like she was a very special woman," said Ronald, 42. "It didn't matter to me if she was deaf or not. She's one of a kind."
He turns to her and signs, "I love you for who you are."
"He's the best man in the world," she said.
Though Mueller has never been happier, she has never heard her children laugh or say, "I love you." Her husband made his wedding vows in sign language.
Mueller wishes more people would learn sign language and be more patient with the deaf and hearing-impaired.
She converses in scribbles with her doctor and dentist.
Meals are ordered by pointing at the menu.
Forget the drive-through window at fast-food restaurants.
"There's a lot of discrimination," she said. "People ignore the deaf. They take hearing for granted."
Still, there is one advantage.
"When I go to bed at night," Mueller said with a smile. "I never hear my husband snore."
