Erie News Now! "Reading Expressions Through A Clear Mask" by Haley Potter

Reading Expression Through a Clear Mask
erienewsnow.com/story/42447541/reading-expression-through-a-clear-mask
Abram's Nation produces 800 see-through masks a week to benefit the deaf and special needs communities, as well as children and anyone wanting to portray emotion.
Mask wearing is becoming more common than not, but wearing a mask and trying to communicate can pose problems for people who are hard of hearing or deaf. Not being able to read clear emotion is also an issue for developing children and the special needs community.
Steve Farmer, The CEO of the Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf says he has a hard time understanding anyone wearing a mask, because he is unable to read their facial expressions.
“I can’t read other people’s lips when they have their faces covered and I can’t perceive emotions,” he says.
Farmer is deaf and this pandemic has posed more challenges for him than one.
“I have caught myself going into the grocery store and people not pulling down their mask to communicate with me,” Farmer says. “Moving closer and talking louder doesn’t help.”
He says deaf people aren’t looking as much at the hands when they are signing, but more at the face.
“Most of the time they are taking their cues from facial expressions and some read lips,” Farmer says.
Robert Petruso of R.W. Petruso Hearing and Audiology Center in Erie says regular cotton masks are difficult for people who are hard of hearing to communicate because they can’t see mouths and the sound is muffled.
“I see people everyday that have difficulty communicating because they can’t see facial gestures,” Petruso says.
Rose Morris, the owner of Abram’s Nation in Pittsburgh found just the solution. She started making clear, see-through masks. Her company specializes in making products for special needs families.
“We saw a need for these masks and decided to keep making them,” Morris says.
Her inspiration came after a mother called up and said her daughter was afraid of her therapist because she had a mask on that covered half of her face. She made see-through masks for that family and therapist and decided she wasn’t stopping there.
“Our thought process is, what problem is out there that we can help and provide a solution for?,” Morris says.
Her company produces about 800 masks a week and recently brought on seven new employees to help fill these orders.
Morris nicknames these masks the smile masks.
“You can see my smile,” she says. “We need emotion, especially in this time. We need to see expression. It decreases the anxieties we feel, it gives us clues we need.”
She says being able to see someone’s face allows you to know when someone is going to talk.
“We aren’t hugging anymore right now so the least we can do is see a smile,” Morris says.
Sherri Klingensmith, a licensed counselor in the State of Pennsylvania says teachers should have clear masks so that kids can see facial expression as they are learning and developing.
Morris says Abram’s nation did recently start making children’s masks as well. She says they are tricky to make, so she is doing a few more trials before she sends them out to families.
The masks are made with a tighter weaved fabric than traditional cotton as well as an antimicrobial wicking fabric and vinyl. Morris says they use adjustable spandex around the neck for comfort.
She says the masks will fog up because everyone has condensation when they talk, but that wiping the mask with clear soap and water before use helps.
Morris emphasizes that these masks aren’t just for people in the deaf and special needs communities, but for everyone to break these communication barriers.
Dr. Farmer agrees.
“It would definitely be nice if the overall community would wear clear masks,” he says. “It certainly is helpful.”
Speaking of being helpful, Morris says she loves where she works, and she wouldn’t want to work in a traditional company.
“It’s a different kind of feel when you work in a company that is doing good,” she says. “It’s life-changing.”