To celebrate Deaf Awareness Day the School of Communication and Culture hosted an event in the Student Center on Thursday, Sept. 26. Held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., it had many activities for attendees including games like ASL telephone and guess that sign as well as a make-your-own button station run by the ASL club. 

There were also booths run by several organizations such as Illinois School of the Deaf Outreach, the Illinois Service Resource Center, the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities, and the Services for Students with Disabilities office. One booth was licensed to sell the late artist Chuck Baird’s artwork.

Near the end of the event, K. Crom Saunders, an associate professor at the School of Communication and Culture, performed his original show titled “Cromania”. Saunders, who teaches “American Sign Language I” and “Deaf Representations in the Media,” told stories from his own life as well as a horror story that he had written to end his performance off. 

During his stories he told the audience about his love of horror, and how people have told him he should make a movie, which leads into the final stage of his act. The final act was a story Saunders wrote about an evil hearing aid, and during the story he went through all the cliche horror “rules” — featuring things like the car not starting, the monster getting back up, and ending with a final “blood fountain,” replacing blood with silly string. 

Once the performance was over members in attendance chose to stay a while after to talk to each other, and the faculty that were present. They also checked out the rest of the booths that they might’ve missed earlier in the event.

Copy edited by Trinity Balboa