Telephone talk for the deaf

The teleprinters can be bought from the Combined New Zealand Societies of the Deaf for about half their retail price of $1000, thanks to a Government grant of $200,000 which the Societies use to subsidise the cost of the machines for handicapped people.

“Hearing people don’t always realise how lonely and isolated deaf people can be if they can’t communicate,” Mrs Walton said.

Teleprinters are especially important for young handicapped children who have never been able to use a phone to talk to their friends the way their hearing friends do, Mrs Walton said.

The societies would like to see teleprinters in public places like airports, police stations, doctors surgeries and Samaritans, so they are available to those who can’t afford to have them in their homes.

“Deaf people can so easily go into their shell and it can be very hard on family and friends,” Mrs Walton said.

This week (April 24 to 30) is deaf awareness week and the society is hoping for a greater understanding of deafness from the public, and donations for people who really need teleprinters but can’t afford them.