Hi, my name is Andrew (sign name), I’ll tell you about my life. I was born Deaf and I went to Sumner School for the Deaf, I was there all my life growing up. When I left school, I came home to my parents and I interacted with them.
I worked with my father. My father taught me about things more deeply. I didn’t know what things meant, about wood and everything. I was educated in the wrong system. My school did not teach me everything I needed to know. It all went over my head.
Later on, through my life I was involved with Deaf Aotearoa – then Deaf Association. There I learnt about Deaf culture, about Deaf identity and everything, that really helped me. It was good to be involved in those meetings. I went to a workshop in Auckland and I went to the first Deaf View conference. It made me think about my life, that is how I learnt about Deaf culture and Deaf identity.
