DRM Deaf Services

10/24/2025

🕯 Join Us — October 24 at 4 PM

The community is invited to gather at the bridge near Veterans Memorial Park for a visible show
of remembrance.

• “We Remember” signs and a sign-making station
• Candles and Remembrance Bags
• Stand together — or drive by and honk in support

Together, we begin 24 Hours of Remembrance.

One Lewiston. Together, We Remember.

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FMI: https://onelewiston.org/commemoration-event/

ID: Maine outline dark blue. Text: “One Lewiston. Together, We Remember.” And ASL ILY hand sign with heart. 10/24–4 PM-Longley Bridge. Hashtags:

10/17/2025

DRM is so proud of our Deaf Services Program Director, Michelle Ames, on her work to curate this exhibit.

The curators wanted to create a place for healing as the 2-year anniversary of the tragedy approaches.

09/17/2025

Election Day is coming up in less than two months. This year, there is an important ballot question, Question 1, which would impact voting access in Maine. Learn more with DRM's ASL explainer video:

https://youtu.be/dnS6nDJ6Dl

Curious about what is on the ballot this November? Learn more about Question 1 and what it will mean for voting rights in Maine!

09/17/2025

Pancake Fundraiser for the Deaf Museum
September 27 @ 7:30 am - 9:30 am EDT

Hosted by Maine Deaf History Museum

Fundraising event for the Museum during the DCF week! Come support!

ASL interpreters will be present

Questions? Contact Sitatra at sitara@deafmaine.org

Visual Description of the flyer is A Stack of pancakes with blueberries and sprinkled sugar on a plate (top of flyer). Gray background. Wording at the bottom of the flyer: Maine Deaf History Museum

1 Mackworth Island, outside the gym

Saturday, Sept 27th, 7:30 – 9:30 am

Prices: $10, under age 12 – $5, under age 5 – free Pancakes with seasonal fruits (Of course, and Maine blueberries!), sides, and coffee/juice.

Easy and free parking at the school.

09/16/2025

Don't forget! The 34th Annual Deaf Tea and Awards is this Thursday!

You are all invited to the first event of the DCF week!

Join the Maine Commission for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Late Deafened for the 34th Annual Tea in celebration of Deaf Culture Week.

Come together for community, connection, and celebration of Deaf culture.

Find more events here: www.deafmaine.org/events/

ID:
The flyer features floral designs in the corners, a dove carrying an olive branch, and a stack of teacups. At the top is the blue Maine state seal. The text reads: Maine Commission for the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Late Deafened invites you to the Hall of Flags for the 34th Annual Tea in celebration of Deaf Culture Week on Thursday, September 18, 2025, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Mary Jane “MJ” Grant, Keynote Speaker.

09/16/2025

Family event - this Sunday!

09/12/2025

More information about Deaf Culture Festival!

09/11/2025

Join DRM on Sept 18 from 5-7pm in Augusta for our next Deaf Rights Group meeting. Right after the Deaf Tea & Awards Ceremony! All are welcome, ASL interpreters provided.

Location: Maine Department of Labor, Frances Perkins Conference Room A, 45 Commerce Drive, Augusta ME 04330

Deaf Rights Group is an open meeting for all to come and share information about the needs and accomplishments of the Deaf Community in Maine. Celebrating 30 years, since 1995!

Share community concerns and barriers, and learn about resources. Come be part of the conversation! DRG serves as the advisory committee to the DRM board, as other constituent groups do, and helps to set priorities for DRM Deaf Services.

Questions? Contact: Michelle Ames, mames@drme.org or VP 207-805-7024

09/10/2025

Save the date for this impactful event, co-curated by DRM Deaf Services Program Director, Michelle Ames.

Gallery will be open through February 7, 2026.

Save the Date! 🩵 Opening Reception Thursday, September 25th, 5-7pm at the UNE Art Gallery Portland

Unspoken Resilience: Healing from the Lewiston Shooting Two Years In

Work by Artists of the Maine & National Deaf Communities and Photographs by Michael Kolster

Co-curated by Michelle Ames and Meryl Troop

September 25th 2025 - February 7 2026

Unspoken Resilience celebrates Maine’s Deaf community through a group exhibition of work by Deaf artists and craftspeople, in conversation with Michael Kolster’s recent series of color photographs of Lewiston. The exhibit foregrounds American Sign Language and issues of communication access, and recognizes ASL interpreters, who offer a linguistic and social bridge between the distinct cultures of Deaf individuals who use ASL and people who cannot sign. Co-curated with Michelle Ames and Meryl Troop, the show is a site of both remembrance and creative action.

Maine’s Deaf community is vibrant and bright, and was disproportionately impacted by the mass shooting in Lewiston on October 25th, 2023, which left 18 people dead and 13 injured. One of the deadliest mass shootings in US history, it is believed to be the only example in the country to impact the Deaf community so severely; over 20% of the victims were Deaf. The tragedy claimed the lives of four Deaf community members; wounded two; and traumatized many more, as in-person ASL interpretation services were withheld by authorities at hospitals and other official settings during the unfolding event. Unspoken Resilience offers a place of healing, recognition, and learning, both centering the enduring creativity of the Deaf community in the group of artworks curated by Ames and Troop, and uplifting Lewiston in Kolster’s sensitive, luminous cityscapes.

Reception is free, open to the public, and will be accompanied by two ASL interpreters

09/10/2025

Deaf Culture Fest is coming up soon! Check out all the details!

Deaf Culture Week 2025 is almost here!

From Sept 18-27, Maine will be alive with events that celebrate Deaf culture, community, and connection - ending with the big Deaf Culture Festival on
Sept 27!

Food • Art • Activities • Pancakes • Festival vibes

Mark your calendar & bring your friends!

Full schedule >>> www.deafmaine.org/events

05/30/2025

SUN Bucks is back this summer! SUN Bucks help to ensure that kids get the nutrition they need to thrive over the summer while school is out. Each eligible school-aged kid receives a one-time $120 EBT benefit to spend on groceries.

Keep an eye out for a letter in the mail! Most eligible kids will be automatically enrolled. Learn more about SUN Bucks and your child’s eligibility at: https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/ofi/programs-services/food-supplement/sun_bucks

05/29/2025

The next MaineHealth Behavioral Health June Stakeholder Meeting is coming up on June 2nd, 2025, from 9 to 10 a.m.

MHBH Deaf Services invites the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, DeafBlind, and DeafPlus communities to participate.

The meeting will focus on Maine’s Deaf community model, Deaf services integration with state agencies, and identifying service gaps to report to the Department of Health and Human Services.

ASL interpretation will be provided.

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/99129059010, Meeting ID: 991 2905 9010.

Contact: Sarah Roller at sarah.roller@mainehealth.org with questions.