BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — This year, Disney ABC surprised a family with a vacation to the Disneyland Resort.
The special day began with the Arevalo family gathering with their friends and loved ones for a nice barbeque in their backyard, many sharing their thoughts with 23ABC about the awareness the Arevalo family brings to the deaf community, both in person and on social media.
Clarissa Laura is a friend of the Arevalo family and says her children are also hard of hearing. Laura said it was nice to have met other parents who understood her.
“It’s important to have that support," said Laura. "We need to support each other, especially for her children and my children. It’s perfect because her children are deaf and my children are hard of hearing, so it's kind of perfect because we can keep each other in a conversation and support each other. It's a must."
Vanessa Silva is also a friend of the Arevalo family and has a child who is hard of hearing. She told 23ABC about how admirable she is of the work the Arevalo family does to bring awareness to the importance of American Sign Language and supporting one another.
“I think that’s great," explained Silva. "I think they love the fact that signing is becoming more known and people are learning more about it. That’s what they want, they want people to know look we’re deaf but that doesn’t mean anything. We still can do anything anybody else can do.”
As the afternoon went on, it was finally time for their big surprise. A video message featuring two Disney Princesses signing to the family that they were invited to Disneyland.
Both Oscar and Estefani Arevalo expressed their excitement about the big surprise.
“I felt it was amazing to see them sign, first of all, because normally we’re not used to seeing the princesses sign and I felt like 'oh my gosh, it’s the same language' and they understood everything it’s amazing,” said Estefani. “I felt overwhelmed. I felt so much love because everyone was here for me. It’s really hard to explain right now. I am really happy.”
“I feel really excited and thrilled because you don’t know how many times we’ve been trying to help people learn sign language," explained Oscar.
Estefani also said that supporting one another is key and that is why she and her family encourage others to do the same.
“We’re a full deaf family and we’re perfectly fine," said Estefani. "We want to let other parents know it’s okay if your children are deaf, they can have the same life as hearing children. ASL Is also a great language and it’s important to get involved and learn ASL.”
