CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The deaf and hard of hearing community gathered at Whitecap Beach for what organizers hope is a new annual event, the Deaf Beach Bash. Between 100 and 200 members of the community showed up from across the state.
Organizers said they want the event to create connections in the deaf and hard of hearing community. It taught the community about rip currents and how to stay safe in the water.
"We explain to them, in sign language, how that can save their lives," host Dirk Hillard said, who spoke to 3NEWS through an American Sign Language interpreter.
Hillard helped organize the Deaf Beach Bash with LeAnn Avalos, event coordinator at the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Center.
Avalos works with kids in their Summer Voyage program, which hosted a surf camp on Saturday with three volunteer interpreters.
"We like to educate them about the beach safety, you know, have to know what's going on here at the beach and keep it safe for them," Avalos said, also through an American Sign Language interpreter.
While this is the first year of the beach bash, it is the second for the surf camp. Avalos told 3NEWS that they reached out to the community to invite even more kids to participate.
Since the Summer Voyage program is local to Corpus Christi, she said inviting more people from other cities could lead to a fun family vacation for deaf and hard of hearing kids.
"We wanted them to have the opportunity, connect with other deaf and hard of hearing kids from all over Texas, as well, so it's good for them to get to know each other and meet each other," Avalos explained.
Hillard said another reason for the beach bash was to establish a connection between the deaf and hard of hearing community and the Coastal Bend. It also helped beach lifeguards learn the best way to communicate with the community and keep them safe while they swim.
"Corpus Christi tends to be behind in some of the things that we're doing, so we're trying to raise awareness and try and catch up for more accessibility for people here," Hillard said.
The Deaf Beach Bash was also good for kids in the deaf and hard of hearing community to meet and connect, whether deaf themselves or a child of deaf adult (CODA).
Dillard said that together it makes it a lot easier to communicate and share their language, which was also his favorite part of the day.
"Seeing old faces and new faces but most, making new friends, just getting to, to communicate in my language," he added.
The fun does not stop at the beach. Packery Bar and Grill is hosting an event for the deaf and hard of hearing community. It's called Deaf Night Out and runs from 7 p.m. Saturday until at least 2 a.m. on Sunday.
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