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A30 FEATURE
Saturday 13 June 2020
Face masks with windows mean more than smiles to deaf people
By JULIE WATSON ated outside hospitals, so
Associated Press have the miseries of deaf
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Michael people.
Conley felt especially isolat- Conley, a San Diego mu-
ed these past few months: seum worker, suddenly
A deaf man, he was pre- found himself cut off from
vented from reading lips by the world. Unable to see
the masks people wore to mouths, he could not un-
prevent the spread of CO- derstand or even know
VID-19. when people were speak-
But then he met Ingrid Hel- ing to him. He was anxious
ton, a costume designer to go to the pharmacy for
who sewed him a solution – his medication or the gro-
masks with plastic windows cery store for food.
for hearing people to wear, He paced outside his favor-
allowing lip readers to see ite neighborhood restau-
mouths move. rant for 45 minutes, won-
She has started a business dering what he would do
to provide the windowed if a masked worker asked
masks, and she's not alone. questions after he gave his
A half-dozen startups are takeout order. Luckily once
doing the same. They have he walked in, the female
been inundated with or- employee recognized him
ders -- and not only from In this June 3, 2020, photo, Chris LaZich, of Fleet Science Center, wears a mask with a window as and immediately pulled
friends and family of the she talks with Delpha Hanson in San Diego. Associated Press down her mask to talk. He
roughly 48 million Ameri- was touched.
cans who are deaf or hard But not everyone knows
of hearing. him. He carries pieces of
"You can tell so much by paper with him to be able
a facial expression, so it's to ask people to write
proving that it can be help- down what they were say-
ful to everybody," Helton ing -- eliminating the need
said. to remove a mask -- but
Teachers want them for that means touching the
English learners struggling same paper, and it can be
without being able to see uncomfortable asking oth-
native speakers pronounce ers to do that.
words. Hospitals and busi- One young man bagging
nesses want them to help his groceries refused.
improve communication, "It makes you lose your con-
and so everyone can see fidence," said Conley, who
the smiles of their workers. has been deaf since birth.
"We have retailers who say, "It takes its toll."
'We want to protect our After he told co-worker
employees but our cus- Chris LaZich about the chal-
tomers need to see their lenges, she sought help
smile and put customers at from her friend Helton, the
ease,'" said Dr. Anne Mc- San Diego Opera costume
Intosh, a hearing-impaired shop manager known for
doctor and founder of Safe In this June 3, 2020, photo, Michael Conley, who is deaf, talks while wearing a mask with a window making extravagant outfits
n' Clear in North Carolina. in San Diego. Associated Press out of almost anything.
The company's surgical Helton got busy sewing.
mask with a fog-resistant And soon, she started her
window, The Communica- company, Happy Laugh
tor, was the first to be ap- Masks.
proved by the FDA. Conley has been moved
The Communicator was that so many people have
developed before the pan- come together to help him
demic to address a prob- regain his independence.
lem that lip readers have Several of his colleagues at
long faced in trying to un- the Fleet Science Center
derstand masked workers plan to don Helton's masks
in hospitals. when the museum reopens.
The problem has been He and LaZich recently met
worsened by the pandem- to try out a prototype.
ic; many interpreters for "I'm having no trouble read-
hearing-impaired people ing your lips," Conley told
have been unable to go LaZich, who stood 6 feet
into medical facilities be- away in accordance with
cause of the highly conta- In this June 8, 2020, photo, Delpha Hanson, daughter of San Diego Opera costume shop manager social distancing rules.
gious coronavirus. Ingrid Helton, cuts fabric for a mask with a window in San Diego. Through her mask's window,
But as masks have prolifer- Associated Press she flashed him a smile.q
