When you have a child with a disability, your outlook on the world might change.
You want to do everything you can to give your child the best life you can. Give them all the tools they need to find their way through the world.
Sometimes, without knowing it, you need the world to lend a hand.
When Glenda and Raphi Savitz had their first child, daughter Samantha, the family was thrilled. But with the birth came news that Samantha was deaf.
The family was ready, though, to put in the work necessary for their child.
“She was the first deaf person we had known, so obviously it was a surprise and a challenge,” Glenda said. “We knew right away that we had to get involved in the deaf community, learn about the culture, and start getting fully immersed in American Sign Language.”
Neighbors learning American Sign Language. Photo courtesy of the Savitz family
But what they didn’t realize was how important their neighbors would be in their life, and Samantha’s, as well.
Shortly before the baby’s birth, the couple had moved into a neighborhood in Newton, Mass.
A tight-knit group, there was no shortage of neighbors greeting the new couple. Glenda said one neighbor came by with a directory that showed the pictures and contact information of each person in the neighborhood.
It gives you an idea that this is a place people don’t want to leave,” Glenda said.
So it’s not surprising that when the parents walked the neighborhood with Samantha, that people like Jill McNeil, were determined to find a way to communicate with the entire family – not just the parents.
“We really wanted to communicate with her and play with her,” said McNeil, who lives across the street from the Savitzes. “And since she couldn’t learn our language, we thought we wanted to learn hers.”
So, McNeil, along with a few other neighbors, signed up for lessons in American Sign Language.
“We met a teacher there that we really loved, and we asked him if he would come here and teach more neighbors,” McNeil said. “So that’s how it started.”
More than 20 neighbors immediately signed up for the class along with the first few.
The class instructor, Rhys McGovern, said he tries to give the students skills to not only use ASL for conversations, but the vocabulary necessary to interact with not only Samantha, but other people who are deaf.
While it takes time, McNeil said they are learning.
Samantha Savitz at a pumpkin patch. Photo courtesy of the Savitz family
“We know how to say, ‘Are you riding your bike?’ or ‘You have pretty new pink sneakers.’ There’s a dog across the street that she loves to play with. So we all know the sign for ‘dog.'”
Also, she said, “Her parents translate for us because her fingers are very small right now and she signs very fast, so we’re trying and we’re getting better.”
Her first sign to all of us is ‘friend,’ which feels very good,” McNeil said.
The drive to be able to communicate with Samantha has resonated with the neighborhood. The class has expanded into two nights, with more than 40 people signing up to learn sign language.
Her dad said that because of the classes, Samantha gets to visit the neighbors, easily chatting and visiting.
It’s absolutely amazing that she feels so at home and they’re signing to her,” said Raphi. “It’s like being surrounded by family.”
The family feels grateful that they picked this neighborhood to live in.
“We’re just so thankful that we live here and we’re surrounded by these wonderful people,” Raphi said. “Our daughter is included and she’s happy. I couldn’t think of a better situation for us and for her.”
But more than anything, Samantha has blossomed.
“Her whole personality changes when it’s someone who can communicate with her,” Glenda said.
Watch below to see the neighbors and the family talk about their special neighborhood.
