Cale E. Owens
Cale Owens, and I were best friends since we both were infants. Everywhere we went, we were always together. Cale was and still is a very laid back and outgoing person. He was the only person I would wanted to do anything with. We went to same school together for 5 years. Cale and I remained close friends even after my family and I moved to Maryland when we both were six year olds. Whenever we visited New Jeresy, Cale always showed up at my grandmother's house. Our lives interwined tightly that no one could break it except for ourselves. It was almost like we shared a secret that no one else could decipher. It was almost like we were attached hip to hip. There is no explanation for this kind of friendship. We both were blessed with this friendship gift. It has been a little over 30 years and Cale and I are able to maintain our friendship but our friendship is at a different level now. A lot of things in our lives changed over the years, but there were always kindling moments where we would return to our "best friends" zone. He was someone who I always felt safe being myself without being judged.
Erin B. McLaughlin
Erin and I met in kindergarten. Honestly, I cannot remember what sparked our friendship. Erin and I had a lot in common, especially our birthdays. Although I have to admit that our personalities are opposite, we used to enjoy doing different new things. It was our early teen years when we started to identify ourselves and tested the new limitations. We always invented nicknames for each other. Sadly, we are not as close as we used to be, but I still see Erin around once in a while.
Mom and Dad
My parents nurtured and cared about me since I was born. Both were teeneagers when they had me. When I became deaf at age of 8 weeks, parents searched for all the help they could get their hands onto to provide me a best quality education. My mother fought for the best education all way through my childhood. When I wanted to make the best out of my education, I shared my desires with my mom. She would stand by me when I had to face the school administrators. The journey was not always pleasant, but we both reached the goals together. My parents taught me to be independent because they never thought less of me. They knew what I was capable of and encouraged me to go further.
Doctor at Philadelphia's Children Hospital
Mom could not remember the name of the doctor, but he played a major role in our lives. When I was exposed to Measles, my pediatrics doctor did not think I had measles and dismissed my case quickly. Mom took me to the children hospital in Philadelphia for another opinion. This doctor examined me and reported that I had mesasles and lost my hearing to it. Doctor helped my parents to place me in different programs to get head start with my language development. The doctor made differences in our lives.
Grandma Vorreyer
Grandma Vorreyer was a high school English teacher for forty and more years. She was very intelligent and strong-will woman. Throughout my childhood, I often spent the summers living with Grandma. She showed how much willing she was to learn sign language and to educate me. As a teacher, she was able to assess my development and made attempts to encourage me to learn new things that I would not have in a house with four other children.
At residential school....
John Thuahnai
front left to right: (1. Christina, 2....., 3. Erin)/Back row-far right: John)
John and I met when we were in 4th grade. Both of us were new students at Maryland School for the Deaf. We did not immediately connect until about a year or so later when my family relocated to a different county in Maryland where John resided. John and I rode the same school bus and had one or two same class(es). There is no particular word to describe our relationship as children. It was unstable, crazy, passionate, and meaingfulness. John had always felt comfortable being around me even when I hit him for picking on me. We connected on different levels. We love and hate each other with frequent make-up. What surprises me is that he and I are two whole different persons. He taught me to think outside and inside of box. He taught me how to think all the possibilities that may not present justification. We kind of went through different phrases together, which I believe led us to behave like "magentic" on both ends.
My Sisters
Theresa and I are twelve months apart in age. We were roommates. We argued and make up all the time. She is my competitor. Without her, I would probably not have reach this far in my life. Theresa is considered to be the gifted child in the family, so I find her to be irriating part of my life. I always needed to be one step ahead of her in academic, but it led me to where I am. I am grateful for that.
Jennifer is three years younger than me. She and I were sort of the black sheep in the family, so we pretty much got along. Jennifer and I played sports and were tomboys in the family.
Deborah is six years younger than me. She followed me in everything I did. We were not close due to age and lifestyle.
As the Vorreyer Girls, we rode bike around the town (Sharpsburg, MD) every weekend and almost every day through the summer. We climbed trees. We did things together as sisters. Once in a while, we still do that plus our niece and nephew (Deborah's children). In addition to sisterly stuff, we do communicate in secret. All of my sisters know sign language and will use to share something without others noticing it.
If you are trying to figure out who is who, we often line up from oldest to youngest in pictures except for the picture of us as small children that I posted here. If you find me, you will realize that Theresa and I always, always stand together in pictures.
front left to right: (1. Christina, 2....., 3. Erin)/Back row-far right: John)John and I met when we were in 4th grade. Both of us were new students at Maryland School for the Deaf. We did not immediately connect until about a year or so later when my family relocated to a different county in Maryland where John resided. John and I rode the same school bus and had one or two same class(es). There is no particular word to describe our relationship as children. It was unstable, crazy, passionate, and meaingfulness. John had always felt comfortable being around me even when I hit him for picking on me. We connected on different levels. We love and hate each other with frequent make-up. What surprises me is that he and I are two whole different persons. He taught me to think outside and inside of box. He taught me how to think all the possibilities that may not present justification. We kind of went through different phrases together, which I believe led us to behave like "magentic" on both ends.
My Sisters
I cannot exclude my sisters from my bioecological model.
Theresa and I are twelve months apart in age. We were roommates. We argued and make up all the time. She is my competitor. Without her, I would probably not have reach this far in my life. Theresa is considered to be the gifted child in the family, so I find her to be irriating part of my life. I always needed to be one step ahead of her in academic, but it led me to where I am. I am grateful for that.
Jennifer is three years younger than me. She and I were sort of the black sheep in the family, so we pretty much got along. Jennifer and I played sports and were tomboys in the family.
Deborah is six years younger than me. She followed me in everything I did. We were not close due to age and lifestyle.
As the Vorreyer Girls, we rode bike around the town (Sharpsburg, MD) every weekend and almost every day through the summer. We climbed trees. We did things together as sisters. Once in a while, we still do that plus our niece and nephew (Deborah's children). In addition to sisterly stuff, we do communicate in secret. All of my sisters know sign language and will use to share something without others noticing it.
If you are trying to figure out who is who, we often line up from oldest to youngest in pictures except for the picture of us as small children that I posted here. If you find me, you will realize that Theresa and I always, always stand together in pictures.
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