DIANE MAKAR MURPHY Miss Deaf Ohio workshop sounds like a winner

"Not many people understand what deaf people go through," Irene Tunanidas said. She looked at me carefully to see if I understood her. I showed her my notes and she nodded.
For my visit to the Miss Deaf Ohio Pageant workshop, we would use speech, lip reading, signing and quickly scribbled notes.
Red-haired and rosy-cheeked, Tunanidas teaches signing in four Youngstown schools. Now 52, she was discovered to be deaf at 4, after a double dose of antibiotics.
"The problem with the deaf is that the families don't have an awareness of deaf resources," Tunanidas said. "[They] don't always get guidance from professionals, who do not have much experience or access in the deaf community. The workshop is one way to get hearing parents involved."
Preparation: The workshop, conducted recently at Youngstown Hearing and Speech Center, Boardman, was designed to prepare contestants for the August 10 pageant.
"The pageant judges more than just beauty," Tunanidas said. "Appearance, intellectual abilities, poise, character are all important."
Equally important to Tunanidas is the opportunity for young deaf women to meet one another and learn about community resources.
Linda Mahmood, who is coordinating the pageant with Becky Somnitz, local vice president, Ohio Association of the Deaf, agreed. "So, when they're grown up," she said through an interpreter, "they will know where to find us. When I was little, I didn't know where to go to visit deaf people. My parents weren't deaf."
"My parents didn't want me to sign," Tunanidas, 52, added. "They were afraid I wouldn't talk if I did." Both women sign and talk. "It gets better each generation," Tunanidas said.
Working on make-up: Six young women attended the Saturday workshop. When I arrived they were sitting around a large rectangular table in a small room, dabbing foundation onto their already beautiful faces. A red-blazered Mary Kay consultant stood at the front.
"OK, now we're ready for color," Carolyn Thomas said while Karen Curfman, the center's staff interpreter, signed. The girls bent over their makeup trays.
"It gives me the best opportunity for my future job as a teacher," Erika Kauffman signed. "It looks good on your r & eacute;sum & eacute;, plus it's fun, and you make new friends."
Erika's mother, Nancy, who is not deaf, also attended. As she spoke to me, she signed, though we were alone. "Erica is 20 years old," she said. "We found out she was deaf at 2 years old."
Nancy said she and her husband felt overwhelmed. They took Erika to the Hearing and Speech Center and began a sometimes exhausting, but always rewarding, way of life. "It's a lot of hard work, because you want your child to be as normal as possible," Nancy said. "She was never behind. She was always ahead."
They commuted from Calcutta to Columbiana to a preschool for the deaf two to three days a week. Erica was reading and writing at four. "Our doctor was totally oral back then," Nancy said, meaning he didn't encourage signing. "But we wanted total communication for Erika."
Accomplishments: Erika took tap, played softball, and volleyball. She was a four-year varsity cheerleader and went on to college, where she's on the dean's list. "She's had to work twice as hard. Can you imagine writing without hearing?" Nancy asked.
I try, but I can't feature spelling without knowing what words sound like.
"Erika never had any deaf friends, never had a role model," Nancy said. Erika plans to be a teacher for the deaf.
"I would like to be able to improve things," Erika said through the interpreter. "I think including deaf children in the regular classroom is good. I want to let deaf people see that they can be comfortable with everyone. I want hearing people to realize it, too. I want both of the worlds to come together."
Tunanidas knew exactly what Erika meant. "My mom and dad said NO DEAF COMMUNITY! Hearing world only. But I want to be in both!"
The workshop, Tunanidas and Mahmood said, may be another step in that direction for six young women. Participation is still open for the pageant. For information, call pageant director Mary Ann Jividen at (800) 750-0750 tty or e-mail MDOP2001@aol.com.