For those of us who have no hearing problems, Christmas is a time of year closely related to happy music, jingle bells and “ho-ho-ho”s! But what about people who are deaf? They’ve never listened to those songs or heard Santa’s characteristic laughter. How could they feel?
This was something that a professional Santa wondered as well. So, he thought he might as well do something to include deaf kids in a viral message, since there aren’t many Santas out there who can sign.
Santa Jay, aka Jarod Mills, has been a professional Santa since 2018. Every parent whose kid has met Santa Jay over this year have only positive comments to make about him. On his professional social media account, he has been recommended by several people, who praise him for being “wonderful” with children, as well as for looking so real that he makes them believe in Santa Claus again.
Mills has been asked by a few friends of his who are parents to deaf or hard of hearing (HOH) children, to send a message to them in sign language so that they feel included and immersed in the Christmas joyful spirit. After filming a few videos for his friends, Santa Jay decided that he should probably record another video, this time addressing all children out there, whether they sign or speak English. And so he did.
In his short video, Mills speaks and signs, letting children know that he’s read their letters and, since they have been nice, he’s preparing to deliver their presents.
“Hello, I’m so excited to see you,” he says while signing. “I have heard that you have been amazing this year; your behavior is perfect. I want you to know that you are on my nice list. I will see you Christmas. Merry Christmas!”
His video has been viewed so far by 2.2M people and shared more than 85K times, while in the comment section Facebook users express their admiration for the man and send him all their love. One of them, who said she used to be his daycare teacher, wrote “I’m so proud of you there’s not enough words to tell you just how proud I am of you. And yes I love you being Santa that’s just awesome.”
Jarod Mills is involved in the deaf community since his now 6-year old son was diagnosed to be deaf at the age of three months. Since then, as Mills explains, he has been learning as much as he can and has been involved in the community, which he highlights is a very strong one.
Jarod Mills not only looks like real Santa Claus, but he also has a kind heart. His act was important for people who have deaf kids in their families and want them to feel at home and included. It’s really inspiring to see people caring about groups in our societies who don’t get to enjoy all the privileges that other people do. Being a deaf kid means that you miss part of the Christmas fun that is the sounds of it- and knowing that Santa is here for you too can certainly give your Christmas holidays a lot more cheer!
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