A Family Fluent In Sign Language

When your spouse and child speak English as a second language, you know you live in an interesting household.

Rob Laughlin, president of Sunburst Chemicals Inc., Bloomington, Minn., a manufacturer of warewashing and laundry chemicals, speaks English at home. He also speaks American Sign Language. Meghan, Rob’s 16-year-old daughter, was born profoundly deaf.

“We found that it would be best for Meghan to learn English as a second language,” said Rob.

Meghan’s first language is sign language. Meghan’s younger brother Danny is hard of hearing, and while he is fully fluent in sign language, he uses English as his primary language and has an interpreter in school and in sporting events to “fill in the gaps.”

Connor, the oldest Laughlin sibling, hears audibly, but his dad says that sometimes he has “selective hearing.” Connor communicates with his family using sign language.

Rob started to learn sign language in the mid-1980s when he started dating his wife Karen. Karen grew up with deaf parents, so sign language was Karen’s first language. Rob took sign language classes at the Courage Center, a rehabilitation and resource center in Minneapolis, and he also took classes at Meghan’s school.

“Sign language has added depth to my life and my family experience,” said Rob. “I look at it as a blessing. We’re not a one-dimensional family that only speaks English.”

Rob continued, “I have a deep appreciation for those who speak other languages — not just sign language. I’m also grateful that we have the communications technology that we have today. It really levels the playing field for deaf people and it’s been a real gift.”

Besides using sign language, Meghan and her family communicate via e-mail, text messages, and video telephones. She attends a boarding school, but is able to call home and speak to her parents using a videophone.

“For our phone calls, we have a monitor and so does Meghan,” said Rob. “Meghan is a drama queen — so she’s very expressive in some of our phone conversations. American Sign Language is not just spelling with your fingers — it involves communicating by using your whole body.”

Girl talk is, according to Rob, made easier because of sign language.

“When our family is together for dinner, our rule is that if you talk, you have to sign at the same time,” he said. “If Meghan and my wife Karen have a conversation that they don’t want the rest of us to be part of, the speed of their language increases significantly, and I am able to understand only about one of every 10 words.”

Like getting mixed up while trying to speak a foreign language one can unintentionally say the wrong thing in sign language. Rob said that the first time his parents met Karen’s parents, they all went out to dinner. Rob’s dad asked him to tell Karen’s parents when the table would be ready. Being a good sport (and perhaps hoping to impress his future in-laws) Rob decided to communicate with sign language.

“What I tried to say was that there were two parties ahead of us,” Rob said. “What I actually said was something about private parties and it was very inappropriate. I learned at that moment that there are some subtle differences in signing — and I promptly put my hands in my pocket.”

Gretchen Roufs, an 18-year janitorial supply industry veteran, owns Auxiliary Marketing Services of San Antonio. To suggest someone you think should be featured in “freetime,” contact her at GretchenRoufs@aol.com.