First Blog Post Ever!
The NW Philadelphia Vegetarian/Vegan Food Swap was created in November 2009 by Nancy Creighton with the intention of bringing the ASL and hearing community together. The original setup paid a volunteer ASL interpreter in shares of the pre-packaged food participants contributed to the event (so we would all make X servings of food to go, plus one, plus something for the tasting table). Our regular interpreter at the time was Judy Nelson , though on occasion another interpreter would bridge the communication gap. The swappable servings were gathered in a separate room, and the tasting and socializing part of the event happened in her livingroom on couches, chairs, side tables, and her kitchen counter. This model went on for years, until Nancy experienced a tragedy around 2012/2013. I, too, was beset by a different tragedy around that time as well. Nancy and I had different reactions to the profound grief we each felt, and I took over management of the group. Without Nancy...