By Gary Rice

Their hearing may be impaired, but their basic work skills and willingness to learn are finely tuned. During their tenure at NADEP Cherry Point, they worked hard, learned a lot, and made lasting impressions on their supervisors and co-workers.

There is no doubt that student machinists Joey Soto, Chris Peterson, and Philip Graham were a welcome addition to the depot workforce this past summer. The young men are attending the National Technical Institute for the Deaf at the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, N.Y., and were here as part of a special summer help program.

“One of our machinists, Ben Johnson, is a graduate of the institute, so we were aware they had a good machining program,” Mary Beth Fennell, Common Industrial Programs Division Director, said. “We had a need for conventional machinists, so we contacted the school to see if they were interested in participating in a work program. Since they have a requirement for internships, they are very happy to send people during the summer months between school years.”

The program was just established last year, when two students were employed at the depot for the summer. The students are sent to fill student aide positions. Their goal is to get more training, and the depot employs them in a variety of machine shop manufacturing and repair jobs.

“The guys have been great,” Machinist Training Leader Jim Liesse, who played a key role in bringing the program to the depot, said. “Their machine skills are good, and they are willing to try new techniques. Communicating with the deaf is a challenge but not an obstacle. Several of our machinists are learning sign language, and Ben helps a lot with that. We’re all very excited about having the students come here, and we would like to establish an actual Co-op arrangement with the institute.”

The three students worked in the Production Department’s Tooling, Line and Manufacturing Shop. Peterson and Graham worked in the machine shop in Building 137, and Soto worked in Building 83.

“He’s a very conscientious and good worker,” Machinist Jim Brown said of Soto. “I think he learned quite a lot working here, and we all really enjoyed having him in the shop. We had to write things down in order to communicate with him, but everything worked out fine.”

On Aug. 7, the day before they departed for Rochester, the students met with Col Eugene Conti, who thanked and congratulated them for their efforts.

“It’s a very friendly and social environment here at the depot,” Graham said, “and we had no problems or difficulties. We learned a lot and will take back with us a lot of great experience. I’m looking forward to going back to school to tell everyone what we learned here.”

“It’s been a lot of fun,” Peterson added. “It’s a whole different culture and experience for us, and I’ve really enjoyed it. The people are very friendly.”

Those sentiments were shared by many employees who got to know the students. Machinist Tony Questell, who spent much of his time working with Peterson and Graham and provided them with most of their taskings, said he was sorry to see them go.

“They were a joy to work with,” Questell said. “I enjoyed sharing my knowledge and experience as a machinist with them, and learning to communicate with the hearing impaired has been a great experience for me. Both Chris and Philip can read lips, and Philip can hear a little, so we were able to communicate fairly well.”

Questell says he wants to be prepared for next year’s students and is in the process of learning sign language.

“Tony and others showed us the proper and effective way to get things done,” Graham said. “I’d love to come back next year for more experience.”

“This was their first experience in dealing with outside employment,” Machinist Supervisor Larry Maddrey said, “and they displayed great attitudes and work habits. They were here for production, not just training, and we also helped to develop their workplace skills by showing them what is expected of them as working employees in the job market. At their school, they’re learning machine shop technology, so they had entry-level machinist skills and the basic knowledge of the machine shop when they got here. At the depot, they were taught how to operate our machinery and manufacture our parts. It was a big learning experience for all concerned.”

Fennell said many of the hearing impaired students at the institute have a real desire to participate in work for the Department of Defense, especially since 9-11. When she visited the school recently, several of the professors told her the students would like to serve their country, but their hearing impairment prevents them from joining the military.

“This work arrangement gives them a chance to serve,” Fennell said. “It’s a way they can contribute.”

Photo 1: Hearing impaired students Philip Graham (left) and Chris Peterson work on a lathe in the machine shop in Building 137 at the depot. (Photo by Gary Rice)

Photo 2: Machinist Jim Brown observes as hearing impaired student Joey Soto buffs a steel part in the machine shop in Building 83 at the depot. (Photo by Gary Rice)