Pub night returns for deaf community

OVER twenty years ago, the Bendigo Deaf community used to have regular pub nights to catch up over a drink.

Now, passionate members of the Deaf Hub Bendigo have brought the event back with the Golden Vine Hotel hosting a get together last Sunday.

Project manager at Deaf Hub Bendigo, Grace Rourke, said the community had been looking for more ways to connect, especially since COVID-19 restrictions have eased.

“Because we are regional, deaf events are hard to come by,” she said. “Events were rare here due to many people moving away or others being too young to volunteer.

“With the added lockdowns and stress, mandates, and anxiety, the COVID pandemic has had a huge impact on what is already a suffering community.”

As part of the gathering there was dinner, drinks, and a few games of pool, and Golden Vine employee and member of the deaf community took orders in Auslan.

“Especially after going through the pandemic, isolation has soared for the deaf community,” Ms Rourke said.

“We are already isolated enough as it is so when the mask mandate happened, we became completely cut off from the world.

“This is our first massive event since the pandemic, to bring the community back together, reduce isolation and in general help improve our mental health.

“We are all about empowerment and inclusion, this is about reconnecting people from afar and near.”

The Deaf Hub was established in 2019 and recently moved into their new headquarters at 6 Darling Street, Eaglehawk.

The Hub runs workshops for people in the deaf, hard of hearing, deafblind or CODA communities, as well as mentoring programs for schools in the Loddon Mallee region and advocacy for deaf youth.

For more information visit Deaf Hub Bendigo on Facebook.