If you have been following Deaf Pagan Crossroads lately, you know that one of the main projects I am working on right now is promoting Equal Communication Access at PantheaCon – one of the nation’s largest indoor conferences focusing on Pagan spirituality.
For more information about PantheaCon and its Equal Communication Access Efforts, please check out the following links for posts here at Deaf Pagan Crossroads:
http://deafpagancrossroads.com/2009/01/25/pantheacon-schedule-is-now-available/
I’m thrilled to say that things are progressing quite well in our efforts to secure interpreting services for this event.
First of all, Mr. Kevin Roddy has been appointed as Interpreter Coordinator, working with Glenn Turner (Coordinator of PantheaCon) and myself to oversee the coordination of such services. Kevin is a student in an Interpreter Training Program in Hawaii, and thus quite knowledgeable about sign language, interpreting, and the Deaf Community. He also formerly lived in the Bay Area, and therefore is familiar with PantheaCon, the local Pagan Community, and some members of the Deaf and Interpreting Community as well. I am confident that Kevin will rise to the task and be able to effectively handle his responsibilities.
A call went out to the Interpreting Community asking for individuals who would be willing to provide such services for PantheaCon, and we have been quite pleased with the response. Several interpreters both from the Bay Area and other parts of California, as well as across the country have contacted us expressing an interest, and we currently have several interpreters on our list. However, we are always willing to accept more so please feel free to contact us if you are interested…even if we don’t use your services this year, your name and contact information will be kept on file for next year.
An excellent point was made by one of my readers about providing real-time captioning (CART services) for those individuals who prefer this type of accommodation rather than sign language interpreters. At this time no requests for such services has been made, and we have not made any plans to provide such. However, this point is duly noted and will be discussed as an option for future conferences. If you are attending this year and do have need for captioning services, please contact Kevin or Ocean and we will do our best to see if we can accommodate you – it may be possible to secure a laptop and typist for such.
If interested in being an interpreter either this year or for next year’s PantheaCon; or if you are a deaf or hard-of-hearing attendee in need of communication access, please contact
Kevin Roddy at kmroddy@gmail.com
Ocean at oshginva@gmail.com
Glenn Turner at glenn@ancientways.com
At this time, we have several interpreters who are committed to coming to PantheaCon and have offered up their services to assure that this conference is accessible for Deaf attendees. In addition, we have interpreters who have indicated that they are available as needed. We have thirteen interpreters all together on our list of individuals whom we can utilize for this event.
However, we need to emphasize that not all of these interpreters are available for every day of PantheaCon or every workshop time slot, so we may still be juggling interpreters during the conference. If we get several Deaf attendees needing interpreters for different workshops all at the same time, it could get complicated. It is possible that we are not going to have enough interpreters to meet every single need. Bear in mind that there are over 200 different workshops being offered, and as many as 15 different workshops during the same time slot. Some of these workshops are ninety minutes in length, and thus may require a team of interpreters, depending on how complex the workshop is (a guided meditation may only need one interpreter, while a lecture would require two).
Currently we have four Deaf individuals confirmed as attending, and several others who have expressed an interest. We expect our largest number of Deaf attendees for Starhawk’s workshop “Holding Power Well” at 1:30 PM on Sunday afternoon.
As of the time of this posting, we have requests for interpreters for the following workshops, and are working to schedule interpreters for them:
Note: if you are or know the instructor for any of these workshops, please get in touch or have them get in touch with Kevin or Ocean to discuss the contents of their workshops and any particular details/vocabulary we need to know for the interpreters and Deaf attendees
Friday
3:30 PM – Men’s Spirituality and Men’s Mysteries (Ivan Richmond)
7:00 PM – Ask the Authors: Relationship with Deity (Llewellyn Author Panel)
7:00 PM – Invoking Your Sacred Self – A Workshop for Women (Ruth Barrett)
9:00 PM – Journey to the Enchanted Tree (Orion Foxwood)
Saturday
9:00 AM – Shamanic Healing Demonstration (Mateyo Empie)
9:00 AM – The Amethyst Pentacle: An Exercise in Queer Divinity (Storm Faerywolf)
11:00 AM – Seven Gates of the Goddess Ritual Pathworking (Christopher Penczak)
11:00 AM – Archetypes of Masculinity Ritual (Brotherhood of the Moon)
1:30 PM – Ancestral Memory: Seeking the Hidden Cauldron (Raven Grimassi and Stephanie Taylor)
1:30 PM – Tibetan Buddhist Tradition (Isa Gucciardi, PhD)
1:30 PM – The Sacred Body of Woman (Z Budapest)
3:30 PM – Coyote and Friends: Trickster Gods, Humor, and Spirit (Ardantane)
7:00 PM – ADF Ritual (ADF)
9:00 PM – Love Tips of the Gods (Lia M. Salciccia)
Sunday
11:00 AM – The Nature of Magic: Goddess Myths and Witch Thealogy (Patrick McCollum)
1:30 PM – Holding Power Well (Starhawk)
7:00 PM – Resonance: A Gay Alternative to Polarity (Hyperion)
Monday
11:00 AM – Psychic Protection (Mateyo Empie)
1:30 PM – A Pilgrimage: Circling the San Francisco Bay (Ginny Anderson)
3:30 PM – Closing Ritual (Glenn Turner and friends)
Note: If you are an interpreter who would be interested in possibly interpreting any of the above workshops, please get in touch with Kevin or Ocean ASAP!
Note: If you are a Deaf person interested in attending any of the above workshops, feel free to contact Kevin or Ocean to let us know of your interest, or simply show up at PantheaCon, register, and if possible let us know which workshops you are planning to attend so we can confirm that interpreters are still available for such.
Note: If you are a Deaf person who wishes to attend a workshop at PantheaCon which is NOT on the above list, please contact Kevin or Ocean immediately to let us know which workshop(s) you are interested in attending, so we can work on scheduling services for you.
To see a list of this year’s PantheaCon workshops, check this link
http://pantheacon.com/09/images/2009_PantheaCon_Schedule.pdf
I would like to take a moment to thank everyone who has given of their support, their encouragement, their advice, and their time to make this happen.
It wouldn’t be possible without you.
I’m psyched! See ya at PantheaCon!
This sculpture shows the sign for "connect"...and that is what Deaf Pagan Crossroads is all about - making connections. Connections between Deafhood and Paganism, connections between the Deaf Community and the Hearing Community, connections between myself as the writer and you as the reader. I hope you will take the time to read my various posts, some of which are listed below. Welcome to the Crossroads, and I hope you make some connections here!
I’ve never been more proud to be Pagan than I am reading this post.
Three cheers for PantheaCon! As a Deaf Pagan myself, I am just positively THRILLED to see that this conference will be interpreted for Deaf attendees! Many, many thanks to Glenn, Kevin, and the interpreters for providing Equal Communication Access, and a very special BIG thanks to Ocean for making it all happen.
Unfortunately I won’t be able to attend this year, but you can bet your dragon scales I’ll be there next year… and I am there with you next week in spirit!
Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing people deserve the right to explore their spirituality just like anyone else… and it is the efforts of such people as those affiliated with PantheaCon that gives us that opportunity.
Please accept my heartfelt thanks, and my best wishes for an outstanding conference!
KUDOS, PANTHEACON!
well all right then, i cannot attend but i rest easier knowing that our deaf pagans will be able to attend and enjoy the festivities, thanks to one and all that volunteered to be interpreters woooo hoooo
Congratulations on the hard work that you all are putting into making Pantheacon accessible!! I WISH I could come and help out but Kansas is a long way from California so I’ll be content with sending you lots of positive energy. Glenn, I so appreciate your willingness to do something new with an event that is so respected throughout the Pagan community. Ocean, you have always been a pioneer and continue to be an agent for change! The plans are evolving and growing and more people are becoming aware of the choices that are out there and THAT is success.
Congratulations again and have a wonderful weekend next week. Blessings to you all:)
Robin
I think the effort that has gone into making this accessible for the deaf community is awesome! Kudos to you, Ocean, for stepping up and making sure it happened! I wish I could attend, but Alabama is unfortunately all the way across the country! Hope it is a success!
Kudos to all involved for their efforts in providing ECA for PantheaCon!!!
As Ocean knows, I was originally led to her years ago in my research prompted by the fact that I could not find pagan events or workshops in my area that were accessible for the Deaf and hard of hearing. With continued advocation, education, and cooperation – we can change this!
Great job Osh, Kevin, and Glenn.
Ocean, I am a former student of Christopher Penczak’s, and I believe I still have his direct email address. I can try dropping him a line today about touching base with you about his workshop and any info that would be helpful for the interpreters to know ahead of time.
PantheaCon looks like an amazing event, and I so wish I could attend! Alas, I am still freezing my fingers off over here on the East Coast.
I wish you all a wonderful PantheaCon weekend!
Blessings,
Crystal
Well, I must say it’s awesome to see an organization actually walking the talk for a change. Kudos, Kudos, Kudos….
This is a MAJOR step forward for all people, deaf or not. Inclusiveness is so important, yet it begins with such a small step – like this. This will really be something that is rewarding in so many ways for all involved, especially the organizers.
Major, major applause for PantheaCon!
I am so glad to hear. Things get inproved. Awesome great !!! I canot afford to travel. But glad to know about what it is up to. Celebrated !!!! Goddess bless!
Witchpi
I’d love to be involved! This will be my first such event. I have interpreted the main stage entertainment at literally dozens of GLBT Pride Events all over California and have shared the stage with an endless list of big-name entertainers and headliners. I have a groovy performance style of interpreting that truly captures the very essence of each artists intent and meaning. I have an impressive list of qualifications and certifications. I’d absolutely love it if you had a look at my curriculum vita to see where I would fit in with the event in the best possible way. I would love to hear from you soon. Email or call my cell 707.758.5207 Matt Parkhurst. MattPterp@aol.com – hey, I even tauche Brangelina how to swear at each other on the set of “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”.
Stopped by just to send you a kiss, Ocean. Life is really busy right now, but you’re in my thoughts!
Hey Ocean! I’m glad to see things are going well. That’s absolutely fantastic about the conference!
-Continued Luck!
Glad to know. Am exciting to hear the good news. Hope it will grow strong and bring the better relationships. Thanks.