Johanna B and her hearing dogs. (NOTE: Photo belonged to the Hearing Dogs NZ Facebook and it is their copyright. I sent a message for their permission and waiting….)

Mm, is there any Deaf women around New Zealand who have done the hard work or achieved their goals for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing community including other communities?  The answer is simple – YES!

Let me see who – Johanna B

Rachel N.

Victoria L.

Mojo M. (NZ Citizenship)

Pat D.

Margaret C

Florence B

Maureen T

Celia K

Jennifer B

Shona McG

Penny W.

and many others

Not everyone (hearing people) in the communities knows about us in New Zealand because they were not connected to the Deaf/Hard of Hearing people in the city and in the rural areas.

These Deaf women’s roles were from a stalwart of equality, advocator, teacher of NZSL (New Zealand Sign Language), a businesswoman, a counsellor, researcher and to Deaf writers. They have got their skills to work in the fields such as in business, e.g. Merge NZ, Hearing Dogs NZ, Deaf Society and Sports and their individual experiences in the Deaf community.

I picked one lady who I knew her back in Hamilton many years ago, and she came to me for a piece of advice about the Hearing Dogs. Johanna spoke to me and my mother through Deaf Christian Deaf Fellowship and a long time friend – Rev Edna Garner.  The years were between 1995 and 1997. Johanna asked me if I know any Hearing Dogs Centre outside New Zealand and my replied was try in Lewknor, Oxfordshire where there are the first Training Hearing Dogs for the Deaf People Centre. This centre runs by two founders Bruce Fogle and Lady Beatrice Wight – and the first dog trainer Tony Blunt in 1982. Lady Beatrice Wight heard about the Hearing Dogs in the USA then she thoughts why not, to have one in the UK. This was how the first Hearing Dogs for the Deaf people in the UK and the additional person was Gill Lacey who worked along with Tony Blunt. I visited the centre during my holiday around the UK.

Johanna took my advice and she took her six months off work without salary to UK and Australia in 1997. Hannah Samuel came along, and she worked with Johanna from the start in Auckland. Johanna trained in Oxfordshire and in South Australia before returning to her home in New Zealand. Out of the blue, she had gifted a hearing dog – Shandy, a Finnish Spitz, cross from the Adelaide Animal Welfare Centre before coming home to New Zealand. I recalled Shandy from time to time when Johanna bought Shandy to our Deaf Christian Fellowship in Hamilton. Johanna received an honour medal – QSM (Queen Service Medal) in 2012. Today Johanna moved to Cambridge to be near her family and still very busy with her works.

Shandy was a loyal dog to Johanna for 14 years and Shandy stumbled to cancer and became deaf. There was another article about Shandy and Johanna. http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/western-leader/4459505/Trailblazing-hearing-dog-dies

We should remember many NZ Deaf women today as for the young generation may not know these women from the past. There is a rumour about putting up a website in the Deaf community because no one had thought about our International Women’s Day (Deaf Women) comparing to the other International Women’s Day.