Elena's Story

Elena is Miss Pennsylvania's Outstanding Teen America 2008. One of her goals as Miss Pennsylvania's Outstanding Teen 2008 is to promote oral education. She is an inspiration to the deaf community, in particular the oral deaf community! Here is Elena's story:

I'm Elena and I got my cochlear implant when I was four as a result of losing my hearing to bacterial meningitis. Today, I'm 16 years old and live a completely normal life. I don't have any hearing help at my 2000 student school and in fact, I sit in the back of the room with no problem for most of my classes! I'm involved in pageantry and currently Miss Pennsylvania's Outstanding Teen which is the teen version of Miss America. I've won over $20,000 in scholarship. The pageant consists of a private interview, talent, onstage question, evening wear, scholastic achievement, and fitness wear. The judges never know I'm deaf until I tell them. I also am a dancer and have competed in competitions as well as participating in numerous dance programs. I also am a singer, actress (and have performed in over 25 professional shows), and a model. I also play in my high school's percussion ensemble which is nationally known for it's amazing music. As you can see from my little 'bio', I'm leading a completely normal life. Nobody can tell I'm deaf at all until I tell them, and most of the time, they don't even believe me! I have to show them my cochlear implant. The cochlear implant was the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me and I thank god everyday for giving me the chance to hear.

Also, you can check out my website at www.misspaoteen.org and there's info on what I am doing as Miss Teen Pennsylvania and how I'm helping the deaf community...'Oral Deaf Education' is my platform.

It's difficult for me to put myself in the shoes of a deaf person without a cochlear implant. Sign language is a whole other world apart from the normal hearing and cochlear implant world. One that relies solely on sign language will never lead a normal life like I, and many other CI users, have. My audiologist was telling me a story about a deaf lady that only signed that needed to be rushed to the emergency room one day. After struggling to communicate with the very confused doctors, she was lucky that a CI user, who also used sign language, was at the hospital. With the CI user's help, they were able to save the other lady's life. Moral of the story, the percentage of the population that signs is so low that in life threatening situations, if people can't understand you, you might not be saved.

I've seen so much success for those who have the CI's that it is difficult for me to understand why a profoundly deaf person would refuse to get one. I feel that I am the luckiest girl to be mistaken for a normal hearing person when I first meet someone. I can also guarantee that I'm not the only one. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of CI users that you would never know they were profoundly deaf. The CI is truly a blessing and it saddens me to know that not all deaf people have the privilege of hearing something as sweet and simple as their name being called.

Here is a video clip of Elena speaking on the news: