Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Church Services

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Lucy Crabtree

In light of the holiday season, we’ve compiled a brief list of area churches that will offer Christmas Eve and/or Christmas Day services that are accessible to the D/deaf and hard of hearing. We hope you find this list helpful as you make your holiday plans. If you know of any other churches that provide accessible holiday services, please let us know in the comments or send us an email at hlaakc@gmail.com.

Happy Holidays!

-The HLAAKC Steering Committee

Captioned service

Olathe Bible Church
13700 W 151st Street
Olathe, KS 66062
Christmas Eve Servce: Saturday, Dec. 24 at 4:30pm
Christmas Day Service: Sunday, Dec. 25 at 10:30am
The first two front rows of the main auditorium are reserved for those utilizing the captions.

Sign Language Interpreted Services

First Baptist Oak Grove
400 SE 14th Street
Oak Grove, MO 64075
Christmas Eve Service: Saturday, Dec. 24 at 6pm
Christmas Day: Sunday, Dec. 25 at 10am

Heartland Community Church
12175 S. Strang Line Rd.,
Olathe, KS 66062
Friday, Dec. 23 – 5 p.m.

Deaf International Community Church
Center of Grace
520 S. Harrison
Olathe, KS 66061
Christmas Eve Candlelight Service: Saturday, Dec. 24 at 6:30pm
Christmas Program: Sunday, Dec. 25 at 10am
*Services are conducted in ASL with voice interpretation

Overland Park Church of Christ
13400 W. 119th St.
Overland Park, KS 66213
Christmas Day, Dec. 25 at 8:15am
Deaf-led service in ASL with voice interpretation at 10:45am

St. Paul Catholic Church
900 S. Honeysuckle
Olathe, KS 66061
Christmas Eve Midnight Mass: Saturday, Dec. 24 at midnight
Reserved seating for the D/deaf in the front of the church on the north side; arrive 25-30 minutes early as the church will probably be full

The content provided in this post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an endorsement by HLAA-KC or HLAA.

A peek into 2012

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Lucy Crabtree

I have a confession to make. As much as I was looking forward to our holiday party last week, I was tempted to talk myself out of going. It was raining that day. I was cold and tired. I didn’t want to drive that far. Would the restaurant be too loud? What if my white elephant gift is too silly? I’m a little self-conscious about the way I sign.

But something that I have learned with my hearing loss is that sometimes, I just have to do things even when I think I’ll be uncomfortable. How else will I grow? What amazing experiences am I missing out on when I choose isolation over activity? So I went to the party and as always, had a wonderful time! It refreshes me to be around other people with hearing loss because I know they get it. We might not all use the same methods of communication but we always find a way to chat and connect with each other.

So thank you SO MUCH to everyone who braved the rain and the distance and even the unknown to party with us! We had a great turnout at Carino’s at The Legends and I enjoyed seeing so many new faces – I hope we’ll see even more of each other in 2012!

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Our next formal meeting will be Saturday, Jan. 21 from 10:30am-12pm at the Plaza Library in Kansas City, Mo. Our goal for these workshop-style settings is to bring in members and professionals in the deaf and hard of hearing communities to present on topics of interest to those with hearing loss. We have CART available at each meeting and transcripts of past presentations are available under our White Papers tab at the top of this page. Keep an eye on the blog and your email inbox for more details about our January meeting.

We also plan social events each month and our next social event will be Thursday, Jan. 26 from 6:30pm-8:30pm at the Central Resource Library in Overland Park, Kan. Sarah Mosher and Alex Vetor will be leading a beginning sign language class for those who are interested in learning sign language or in brushing up on their signing skills.

So mark your calendars, people, because we want to see more of you soon! We hope you can make it to our January events and as always, if you have any questions or comments, you can email us at hlaakc@gmail.com. You can also find us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Have a safe and happy holiday season!

Upcoming HLAA webinars

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Lucy Crabtree

At our last formal meeting in November, Dennis and I led a discussion on how to manage your hearing loss during the holidays. At the national level, HLAA hosted a webinar on the same topic just a few days before our meeting and if you missed that excellent presentation, you can read the transcript or replay the webinar.

The next webinar is Thursday, Dec. 8 at 6pm CST. Brad Ingrao, Au.D., will be discussing “Basic Acoustics and Electronics.” (Click link to register) From the website: “People with hearing loss are dependent on the electronics in their hearing devices as well as the physics of sound (acoustics) of every room they listen in. This webinar will describe the basics of both acoustics and electronics as they relate to hearing loss and hearing technology.”

For a complete list of upcoming webinars, please visit the webinar schedule at hearingloss.org. For more information on what a webinar is and how to register for one, visit the webinar page.