Story by Stephanie Reyes
Illustration by Cameron Giblin
Photo by Courtney Hendricks
At three years old, Shirley Sieczkowski’s grandfather sent her to get a monkey wrench from her father. She ran across the yard to her dad, and looking up at him, signed, “I need a monkey…” Not knowing how to fingerspell ‘wrench,’ she returned empty-handed, exclaiming, “I couldn’t get it. I don’t know how to spell ‘wrench’.” Shirley was born hearing to Deaf parents. Now, as an interpreter for the Deaf community, Shirley works at local schools and teaches American Sign Language at Lane Community College.
How many generations are deaf in your family?
Just my parents. When my grandmother was pregnant with my mother, she had the Mumps. So my mother’s Eustachian tubes, which help regulate pressure in the inner ear, are malformed. My dad lost his hearing before he was a year old due to severe ear infections. They are the only ones who are Deaf in my family; it’s not hereditary.
So while deafness doesn’t run in your family, what are your thoughts on deafness? Specifically, do you consider deafness a disability?
Most of the Deaf people that I know do not see themselves as disabled. They see themselves as being able to do anything that anybody else can do, except hear. The hearing world created the label “hearing impaired” in order to be less offensive, and ended up being more offensive. Being Deaf, capital D deaf, is who you are, not what you are: unable to hear.
Can you describe a typical day in a public place with your parents?
Being out in public with my parents was always fun. Strangers always complimented me for helping. My parents didn’t hide signing. We lived in a small town and people knew they were Deaf. I knew other kids like me who had Deaf parents, and they were not allowed to sign in public.
Do you have any guilts about being able to hear and your parents being Deaf?
No. None. I wouldn’t change anything. It was a great childhood.
When did you start interpreting for your parents?My earliest remembrance of interpreting was when I was about five or six. I remember before I started school, I was put in front a group of Deaf people at church and would sign the service. There was no recognition of interpreting as a profession. Kids who had Deaf parents and could sign were expected to help.
When you were a child, what job did you envision you would have as an adult?
I wanted to be a teacher at the Oregon School for the Deaf in Salem. I never finished high school because I got married and decided to have kids. I finally went back and got my GED in 1993, and shortly after I started working for the school district as an interpreter. My husband was out of work and there was a job available
as an interpreter. I was recommended and I took the job.
Can you describe your involvement with local American Sign Language programs?
I have taught ASL at Lane Community College since 1994. I got into teaching because the Deaf gentleman who was teaching the class lost his eyesight and was unable to drive. He asked me to take over the class—on the condition that it was just one class, I said fine. But by mid-term, I was hooked. So when LCC asked if I wanted to continue teaching the class, I said yes. I found an enjoyment in teaching. I have taught an infant sign language class at McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center, I’ve taught basic signs to law enforcement and members of the fire department, and I am always up for specialized classes. I am happy to put a class together for people who need it.
Do you think people understand the difference between ASL and other sign languages?
I think most people assume that sign language is sign language. People don’t understand that there are different sign systems used in the U.S. as well as in other countries. All countries have their own version of sign language that is usually totally different than ASL. Sign language is just like spoken language—so naturally, there are different systems of sign for different spoken languages.
What do you think of ASL being accepted as a foreign language in universities?
I think ASL is a language separate from English. It needs to be recognized and accepted as a foreign language. Many colleges and universities accept ASL as its own language of syntax and grammar, and it meets requirements as a foreign language. So, with all this said, I think ASL should be considered a foreign language.
What is your role as an interpreter?
My role as an interpreter is to facilitate communication between two language systems: one audio, one visual.
Did you teach your children to sign?
I didn’t teach my children how to sign because as a young person, I felt a huge responsibility to the Deaf community. I never gave myself permission to say no if a Deaf person needed an interpreter because most of the time, there was nobody else. I didn’t want my children to feel that sense
of responsibility.
Are there other forms of sign language used in the local Deaf community?
Locally, the sign language used is primarily ASL. The interesting thing about ASL is that because it is a language, it is constantly changing.
Is the Deaf community open to hearing people being involved?
Yes and no. Deaf people live within the hearing world, so Deaf people are in the hearing community. However, the core group within a Deaf community is generally all Deaf.
How can a hearing person become involved?
The first thing to do is to learn the language. Find a Deaf friend and spend time with him or her. Be open to recognize the differences without judging the differences. Recognize and understand that Deaf people come in all levels of communication and language abilities. Probably the biggest complaint I get from Deaf people when they find out I teach ASL is that hearing people talk down to them. If you want to be connected, you have to be accepting.
Are there community events that Deaf people are more likely to be involved with than hearing people?
Most towns with a reasonably sized Deaf population will have a Deaf bowling team, deaf poker tournaments, and Deaf cruises. There are Avon ladies and tupperware sales women who are Deaf; they just cater to a different group of people.
Do Deaf people tend to be more blunt than hearing people?
That tends to be very true. The other thing said about Deaf people is that they are rude. It comes from a lack of understanding of Deaf culture and how it differs from hearing culture. Traditionally, Deaf people have a smaller group of people to communicate with. Therefore, when they get together, they tend to take less time with the “niceties” that the hearing world requires.
What do you hope to achieve by being involved within the Deaf community?
Making my mother proud. When I was growing up, she was very insistent that I learn to sign like a Deaf person. If I achieve that, then I am happy.
By being an interpreter, do you think you help overcome these issues?
As an interpreter, some, but as a teacher, it’s one of my major goals. The more informed people are, the more accepting they are. Focusing on the similarities instead of the differences helps people to understand that we are all alike.
Knowing what you know now about your career and involvement with ASL, would you choose the same profession?
I consider myself an interpreter and then a teacher. I would have liked to have been a teacher and then an interpreter, but now I am primarily an interpreter.

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