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December 2, 1999

Santas Assigned to Hear Deaf Children's Christmas Wishes

Carol Davis

(ANS) -- Perched on Santa's lap, Sal Fiorentino was ready to rattle off his Christmas wish list, but first the 3-year-old just had to give Santa's beard a tug. Santa's helpers grabbed his hands and told him not to touch it.

Sal's mother, Diane Fiorentino, rushed to explain that her deaf youngster wasn't being disrespectful, "He was trying to read Santa's lips."

Now, 16 years later, Fiorentino, of Long Island, N.Y., runs a foundation whose first project was to give deaf children a Santa who could communicate with them in sign language. The pain of her young son's first encounter fueled the foundation's creation, Fiorentino said.

"Santa's reaction and the others there when they realized he couldn't speak was horrible. I was crushed, devastated that something as natural as visiting Santa was something that my son can't participate in," she said. "He kept telling Santa, 'I'm a good boy.' It was so heartbreaking to see."

Fiorentino, whose son is now a 19-year-old college student, decided that other deaf children shouldn't have to endure what her son did and four years ago created the Fiorentino Foundation, dedicated to changing the perception of deafness, she said.

Their first priority was to set up the signing Santas program, and four years later signing Santas are available for deaf children across the whole New York metropolitan area.

"We decided to find a Santa who could sign, preferably a deaf one who could speak, and he could speak with a deaf child and their hearing siblings, so all the children could participate with Santa without feeling like they are not part of the occasion," Fiorentino said.

The foundation approached Hicks Nurseries, Long Island's oldest garden nursery, established by the Hicks family in 1853, with the proposal to host the signing Santa. Fred Hicks, president of the firm, quickly agreed.

"There's a need and it's family oriented and many things we do -- our promotional efforts -- are all family-oriented events," Hicks said.

"These are children who are just as anxious and excited and needy as any other child, but they can't typically go to many Santas because Santa doesn't understand," Hicks said. "The child can't hear what Santa is saying and communication is difficult because Santa doesn't sign and they do, so this gives them an opportunity."

For the signing Santa's first appearance, about 30 children showed up with their families. "The second year, we were mobbed," Fiorentino said. "We had more deaf adults coming who have hearing children who wanted to see Santa because as a child they wanted to (communicate) with Santa."

Last year, more than 100 deaf children climbed on Santa's lap to tell him what was on their wish list. "They can pull on his beard so they can read his lips," Fiorentino noted.

Watching the reaction to the special Santa is always heart-tugging, Fiorentino said. "Families and their children come and I cannot tell you the expressions on their face when Santa starts signing to the children," Fiorentino said. "Parents are crying that they've found a place for their child to be part of Christmastime."

She hopes others can avoid the conflict her little boy felt. Sal continued to visit Santa for a few more years, and though the pictures reflect a smiling child, the agitation always was there, she said. "He's smiling, but as he got older he told me, 'I always felt tension going to see Santa because you were very nervous,' and I guess that reflected on him," Fiorentino said.

She and her husband had friends dress up as Santa and come to their house, but that just wasn't the same as going to see Santa at the mall, she said.

Of course, times and technology have changed, and Fiorentino is anxious to take full advantage of it. Indeed, she arranged what she believes is the first opportunity for deaf children to make the equivalent of a phone call, of sorts, to Santa.

Last year, Fiorentino organized a video conferencing program and set up computers in two schools for the deaf. "Our Santa was on one side of the computer with a camera, and children in the schools lined up to talk to Santa," she said.

"It was so wonderful. I invited parents to come to the base where they were able to watch their children talk to Santa," she said. "There wasn't a dry eye in the audience."

Creating such opportunities for deaf children is her way of lighting the pathway for her son and others, she said.

"I can't change his deafness, but I can make a difference in the world," Fiorentino said.

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Carol Davis is a free-lance writer based in Nashville, Tenn., and a former editor for the Nashville Banner.

Contacts:

Diane Fiorentino, founder, Fiorentino Foundation, Long Island, N.Y., 516-579-6463; e-mail: <dianefior@aol.com>.

Fred Hicks, president, Hicks Nurseries, Long Island, N.Y., 516-334-0066; web site: <www.hicksnurseries.com>.