Issue #3, October 2006
· : News & Info : ·
Updated deaflds.org Directory
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 8, 2006
You'll notice a new addition to the deaflds.org Deaf Unit Directory: international Deaf units. We're starting with just the small amount of information we have, but hope to learn more about these international units and members over the next several months.
In addition, we've added several new units since we last published in June; branches and groups from Colorado, South Dakota, California, Virginia, and more have sent us information. Make sure to look to see if your ward, branch, or group is listed.
If you have information, please contact 
info@deaflds.org.
The Rock Church in the City of Roses
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
Deaf members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints enjoy a unique and special heritage. Early Deaf pioneers such as Max Woodbury, Spencer Hind, Joe Brandenburg, and the irrepressible Sam Judd set faithful examples of teaching and leadership, and their examples touched and trained several generations of Deaf leadership in the Church. Less talked about, however, are the histories and souls of unique buildings where Deaf members have met, learned, played, mourned, and strengthened their testimonies. The Old Rock Church on 30th and Harrison has been the home of Portland's LDS Deaf members for at least thirty years.
Built in 1929, the 30th and Harrison building where the current Portland Heights Deaf Branch meets is a classic example of Northwest architecture and represents a landmark in early Church building. The rock exterior is a symbol of the faith and strength of testimony of Portland's Deaf members. Likewise, the history of the Branch is rich: the first known Deaf member in the Portland area, Dixie Farnsworth (later Brandenburg) began attending church in the 30th and Harrison building in 1960; Wanda and Charles Forscht joined the church in 1961 and 1965 and were later joined by the Coles, Adams, and Clanton families.
By 1981, the Portland Branch was formed, beginning 25 years of the Church and missionary work (dozens of elders and sisters have served in Portland; Elders Kevin Hartelius and Steve Lamont were the first elders assigned to the Branch in 1981 and Sisters Colleen Lotti and Julie Knudsen were the first sister missionaries in 1991) among the Deaf in Portland. The current Portland Heights Deaf Branch now serves members from all over the Willamette Valley—from Salem to Vancouver, Washington—and recently celebrated its 25-year anniversary with a wildly successful area Deaf conference in July 2006.
Conveniently, the 30th and Harrison chapel, like the historic Ogden Deaf Branch building (built in 1918) and the current Salt Lake Valley 1st Ward chapel, has a sloped floor, perfect for viewing ASL talks and presentations. The chapel interior is embellished by beautiful dark cedar walls and pews and touched by natural light through weathered glass, making it easy to see and understand signers and interpreters from the pulpit.
Probably the most beautiful—and most used—feature of the 30th and Harrison chapel is the multipurpose room and stage. Where most typical Latter-day Saint church buildings have a basketball court, the 30th and Harrison building has a cozy multipurpose room lined by benches and capped with a wonderfully crafted stage. The site of many branch activities and potluck dinners throughout the years, Branch members seem to feel right at home here and a feeling of nostalgia permeates the room.
The old Rock Church at 30th and Harrison is the perfect home and symbol for the Branch: strong, rich with history, and a testament to the gospel of Jesus Christ in "God's country," the Northwest.
· : LDS Deaf Events : ·
Plans for 2007 Deaf Symposium in Nauvoo Announced
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
Plans for the 2007 Deaf Symposium have been announced and for the first time in the event's history, the Symposium will be held outside of the Utah area. Sponsored by the Salt Lake Valley 2nd Ward, the Symposium will be held from July 4–7, 2007 in Nauvoo. IL. Details are still being worked out but the week will include two ASL temple excursions to the Nauvoo temple and several area interpreted tours during the week. Price is $150 per adult, $75 per child (price does not include travel to the Nauvoo area); more information about housing, food, and agenda can be found at the 2007 Deaf Symposium website, www.nauvoothegatheringplace.com.
Church Announces 2006 Encore of "Savior of the World"
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
Update (21 October 2006): Tickets are still available; shows are in the LDS Conference Center Little Theatre at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. December 9, 2006. Prices are just $5.00.
Back by popular demand, the Church's musical production "Savior of the World" will be performed again during the upcoming Christmas season in two shows December 9, 2006, in the Conference Center Little Theater. This inspiring musicial play about the birth and resurrection of Jesus Christ will again be both captioned and interpreted into American Sign Language for Deaf and Deaf-blind attendees.
Pre-ticket sales open October 17–23, 2006, and general public tickets become available October 24; plan now to reserve tickets early. Please inform the Conference Center ticket office if you are deaf-blind (scripts of the performance are available in Braille) or require other accomodations. The ticket office is located at the northwest corner of the Conference Center north of Temple Square (door #4) or you can call (801) 240-0080 (voice). For more information, you can also call Sister Kym Stockman, (801) 240-5424 (V/TTY).
· : News & Info : ·
Changes to Deaf Missionary Areas
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
Missionaries to the Deaf have been transferred from the Phoenix AZ Mission to the Mesa AZ Mission and still continue to serve the Phoenix Deaf Branch. Also, missionaries to the Deaf are now assigned to serve in the Sacramento CA Mission, serving the Sacramento Deaf Branch. We'd love to hear from either of these branches and/or missionary companionships about the work in these two areas.
Brett Mortensen (American Fork, UT) has been called to serve in the Anaheim CA Mission (Fullerton Deaf Branch, Fullerton, CA). He entered the MTC October 4, 2006.
Have Deaf Program missionary news to share? We'd love to hear about it. Please send the information to info@deaflds.org.
· : Materials & Resources : ·
"Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple" Now Available in ASL on DVD
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
The ASL translation of the Church's "Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple" is now available on DVD. The ASL translation of "Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple" is taken from the booklet of the same name (written by Boyd K. Packer of the Church's Quorum of the Twelve) and will be of great help for members of the Church who are being sealed in the temple or are preparing to enter the temple for the first time. There is no audio track, but there are English subtitles.
To order this DVD, go to www.ldscatalog.org, enter the product number 36793010, and click Go; this will go directly to the order screen for the Preparing to Enter the Holy Temple ASL DVD. Cost is $1.00.
Church Begins Offering Spanish-language Closed Captioning
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
You probably didn't notice at the last general conference—unless you also know Spanish or use your TV's CC2 setting—but for the first time ever, now Deaf Church members have a choice in the language that shows up in their television's closed captioning. At the fall general conference held on September 30 and October 1, 2006, real-time Spanish-language closed captioning was available during all five sessions. Several Central and South American countries now have various-sized Deaf branches (Mexico City, Venezuela, Chile) and while there are no signed or interpreted Church DVDs or videos available in these Latin signed languages, closed captioning is certainly a great help to Deaf members in these countries.
ASL Translation of October 2006 General Conference Now Online
By Deaflds.org Staff / October 6, 2006
ASL translations of all six sessions of October 2006 General Conference are now available online at asl.lds.org. As with other archived sessions of conference at this site, you'll need Microsoft Windows Media Player to watch the movie files. (Note: these are full resolution movies; you'll need to have a broadband connection to view these files.)
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