UNITED WE SIGN

Presenters

Dr. Frank Lala

Dr. Frank Lala received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Community Health Education, his Master of Education degree in Deaf Education, a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Health and Human Services with Dr. Harlan Lane, recipient of the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship and author of “The Mask of Benevolence: Disabling the Deaf Community”, and Dr. Betty G. Miller, author of “Deaf and Sober: Journeys through Recovery” as Dissertation Advisors/Mentors, and a certification in Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counseling from UCLA. As a key speaker he lectures on substance abuse and has authored many publications in the field of deafness, a poem "A Credo for Deaf Americans" along with his published book, "Counseling the Deaf Substance Abuser". He's a recipient of Gallaudet University's Laurent Clerc Award. Kentucky Colonel Award from Governor of Kentucky.

Dr. Lala received his black belts in tang soo do karate and ju-jitsu. Karate instructor was UFAF Chief instructor Ron Pohnel at Chuck Norris' Sherman Oaks Karate Studio. He was featured in Black Belt magazine (August 1994). Chuck Norris' UFAF newsletter, "The Octagon" (Spring 1994), congratulated him for "Karate Athlete of the Year Award in 1993" with best wishes from Chip Wright. He was instrumental in having the International Martial Arts Federation of the Deaf accepted as a member of the CISS (Comite International des Sports Sourdes) for Deaflympics.

Dr. Lala was awarded the William F. "Bill" Callahan Award for his sustained and meritorious service at the national level to the professional of addiction counseling by NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals, at the NAADAC / TAAP (Texas Association of Addiction Professionals) annual conference in Corpus Christi, Texas on July 8, 2005. He was the Director/Clinical Supervisor for the Northwest Deaf Addiction Center in Vancouver, Washington. He is currently working for Georgia Department of Labor as Rehabilitation Counselor for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing.

Diane Lynch

Diane Lynch, CI, CT and Ed:K-12, is a recent transplant to Georgia “currently spreading her roots in Duluth”. She was born and raised in southern New Jersey, just outside of Philadelphia, PA. In 1993, she graduated from Camden County College in Blackwood, NJ with her A.A.S. degree in Sign Language Interpreting. For the next 15 years, Diane worked to establish a thriving freelance interpreting practice due largely to endless encouragement and support of her husband of 24 years, Franny and her 11 year old daughter, Heather Joy.

In 2008, the tables turned serendipitously. A lateral career transfer was offered to her husband, and with encouragement and support from Diane, the family headed to Gwinnett County, GA. Transitioning into a new life has been an enriching and joyous experience for Diane. She enjoys active participation in her church (Christ Church Episcopal in Norcross, GA), Georgia RID, and her work as a Video Interpreter at Sorenson Communications.

Diane's presentation entitled: Stand, Sit, Kneel, Repeat: Insight Into the Episcopal Tradition, will focus largely on the denomination of her youth, the Episcopal Church, minus a 17 year period. Diane will share how this particular tradition continues to evolve and invites and supports a wide range of ideologies and world views- from conservative to liberal. Diane invites participants to learn and reflect on major aspects of the Episcopal denomination, and join in exploring its spiritual and linguistic interpretations which propel her to want to journey further and experience God to an even greater degree.

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Presenters