DeafHope is now in the early stages of realizing its dream to design and build a new shelter for Deaf survivors in the San Francisco Bay Area.  The new facility will be a very special place with temporary living quarters and space for a host of social services within a supportive community environment designed specifically for Deaf survivors.

Many survivors of abuse struggle to maintain a strong, positive identity—particularly for individuals within the deaf community who may already be accustomed to feeling isolated from our generally hearing-oriented society.  DeafHope works to help survivors rebuild a positive identity as an individual and a member of the Deaf community—an important aspect of their mission that drives the organization’s vision for the design of its new shelter.

The facility will be a safe haven where survivors can feel at home—a place of security that encourages self-expression and self-reliance.  But this place won’t be like most homes—it will be a Deaf Home.  As Deaf people we inhabit a highly visual world; we have a visual and spatial language, a visually centered way of orienting within the world and a strong cultural bond built around our visual ways.  The design for the shelter will take each of these aspects of Deaf identity into account to create a place that is safe, comfortable and affirming. The new facility will have a strong connection with nature, it will be full of natural light and open spaces for good visual access, encourage social interaction and a general sense of well-being.

In the next few months DeafHope will begin working with Hansel Bauman, AIA and Hope Mitnick, AIA of San Francisco based HBHM Architects to develop preliminary design concepts for the new facility.  For the past two years the firm has been working in collaboration with Gallaudet University, the world-renowned liberal arts university specifically for Deaf people, to develop Deaf Architectural principles for new campus facilities. The DeafHope shelter will be the first new building beyond the Gallaudet campus to be designed with the complete Deaf Architectural principles in mind.