Unheard No More: Triumphs in Advocacy from the Deaf Community's Champion - Kellina Powell

[00:00:00] Elton Brown: Welcome to SpeakUP! International with Rita Burke and Elton Brown! 

[00:00:17] Rita Burke: It is such a pleasure to be having this conversation today. As a matter of fact, all of our guests inspire, educate, and inform through their stories. Today will be no exception. We will be talking with a woman who tells us that she lost her hearing when she was four years old.

Yet, despite the challenge of losing her hearing, she rocked her academic journey. She has a degree in psychology and a diploma in mental health and addiction. 

[00:00:54] Elton Brown: We're so glad to have you with us today. How can we work together to break down communication barriers faced by the deaf community? I think that's one of the most important questions that we're going to ask you today. So I want you to have as much time as you feel necessary to answer that question.

[00:01:15] Kellina Powell: For sure. Lots of very excellent questions. The first thing you can do is learn the basic ASL. Hi, how are you? Thank you. You're welcome. Even if you can sign your name, that would be super helpful as well. And second, if you can, sign up for an ASL class. There's a lot of affordable ASL classes out there now that a lot of people can attend to.

And thirdly, be patient. It's very important that we all be patient when we are working with someone or even being with someone that is hard of hearing. It's very important to be patient because a lot of people don't notice that it takes time for a deaf person to process hearing, process words in their hearing.

And as well, I would always recommend this to everybody is always do your research. It's super important to understand How is the person able to hear you. How can you communicate with them and everybody is different. That's one of my piece of advice I always tell everybody is that not every one person you meet is going to be the same thing as another person.

For example, myself, who is a hard of hearing person, I know a little bit of ASL versus someone who knows completely ASL but they can't hear. Do you think that me and this person, uh, communication is the same? Of course not. Our communication is completely different. That person maybe relies on lip reading versus myself.

I'm also lip reading too. But that person may rely on hand ASL. Me, I'm vocal, so I can actually have a conversation, speak, versus ASL. So I'm not fluent in ASL. Not just that, but I did learn ASL when I was younger, when I went to the deaf school. But unfortunately, because I was moved into a hearing school full time.

I lost completely my communication. 

[00:03:16] Rita Burke: So I hear you saying then, Kalina, that no two people are identical, so we must do our research if we're attempting to communicate with people who are Deaf. I read in your, in your bio that one of your passions is empowering the Deaf community. Help us understand how you do that, please.

[00:03:38] Kellina Powell: For sure. I first did that through my book. Um, so my book is called Every Day I Am Just Deaf. You can see it on Amazon. And what I used in my book is, it's a poetry book. It really talks about what it's like to be deaf daily basics. And I also wanted to empower young people, or even just everybody in general, to say if Kalina can do it, you can do it too.

It doesn't matter what abilities you have, what differences you have, doesn't mean you can't achieve anything in your life. And I spoke about relationships, school, um, now like simple communication, how did I overcome it, especially my mental health. My mental health was very big on my hearing loss, and I did trigger a lot in terms of anxiety.

I had a lot of anxiety while communicating with someone who was hearing. So I talk about a lot in my book, How Did I Overcome It? And secondly, I do international speaking. I speak in schools, organizations, showing others that If I can do it, you can do it as well. And what I do speak on, basically, is my mental health.

And I feel like that's super important in the disability community because a lot of us don't have a lot of role models who is very open about our mental health and how do we learn how to cope and what are professionals out there that we can go to. And there's a lot of lack of professionals in the deaf community, unfortunately.

And this is why the numbers about mental health is so big. Compared to any other community, 

[00:05:10] Elton Brown: I think in some situations, the individuals with hearing disabilities are left out, not necessarily because people think, you know, that these people are crazy or defective in that way. But how do we promote a way so that all people are joined together regardless of their, uh, disabilities, whether it's hearing or else?

[00:05:40] Kellina Powell: I would say is don't be afraid to ask questions. I feel like a lot of people in the hearing community are super nervous to ask questions. And I always tell people, don't be afraid because we will appreciate you even asking us. And second, always ask what can you do to help them. Before you come on to, for example, a Zoom call, for example, a meeting, for example, if it's face to face interaction that you're having with the person, always ask them what is it they're comfortable with and how can you help them.

And believe me when I tell you, 90 percent of them will tell you what they can do and how can you accommodate them better. And sometimes, especially myself too, for example, I don't really say anything until someone asks, but I know that I need to get better at that. And that's something I'm also teaching other people.

You have to say something because they won't know. And again, I keep telling and reminding everybody is that they're nervous. Ask us questions. So it's very important that we can get out there like, Hey, by the way, I need this, this, this, this. It will help a lot. So, um, I always ask questions, no matter how dumb the question is, you never know unless you ask.

And I always tell people, the more questions you ask, the more education you're going to educate yourself about the Deaf community. That's really what it's about. And I always tell people, there's no such thing as a dumb question. Right? You don't know. If you don't know that, Just ask someone. Always ask. No matter how harsh the question may be, but just ask.

Because sometimes when you look on social media, it's all in one. There's too many information. And I noticed that one person came to me, she asked me an advice on how to have a conversation with a Deaf person that I think it was like her family members. And she looked up online and she thought it was the answer and then she came to me and I said that is totally wrong, you shouldn't do this.

And it was so, it was really funny and I said no, he's not, no, no, no, no, don't do that. I said, oh my god, thank you so much. And then I told her. Ask your family friends. Ask them. Don't just look up. Because everybody's different and everybody's writing is different online. You just never know. Everybody's different.

[00:07:51] Rita Burke: You lost your hearing at age four. Talk to us about what that experience was like for you, please. 

[00:07:59] Kellina Powell: Oh, boy. Okay. So, hi, Stu. So, I was, um, I'm pretty sure a lot of you are probably listening and wondering how did I become deaf. So, I actually became deaf due to an ear infection. I went to daycare one day.

There was an eardrop that was specifically prescribed by my doctor. My family told the staff members what to do with the eardrop. However, I don't know what happened myself because I was four. They either, one, put in the wrong time, two, they put too much eardrop. So that same day, I actually became deaf. So that whole time when I was walking home, that's when I realized my hearing was dropping because I was actually watching TV at home.

My mom tapped me in the shoulder and said, Kalina, I'm calling you. And I had no idea my mom was calling me. I jumped. And my mom looked at me and I, I literally told my mom, I'm like, Mommy, I can't hear you. And my mom said, no way. And so, my mom freaked out. My grandma was a nurse at the time, thankfully. So my grandma knew what she was doing.

She rushed from the hospital. She did all these assessments with me. And my grandma knew something was up. So she called my family doctor and I was confused, right? I was like, what's going on here? What is happening? I hear my mom on the phone, upset. And I'm hearing my grandma doing all these weird things on her hand.

I think we're all in the Korean language. And I was like, what's going on? And so I was so confused because I can't hear. And the sad part is I could not write. I had a four year old to tell my family how I feel. I didn't know what to say. I was like, Help me. Help me. And I remember saying that to my mom, because I was like, help me.

I can't hear you. And it was very hard to sleep that night, right before I went to my family doctor. And I remember I sat down with my family doctor. He kept looking at my ears. And I was like, why are you putting the thing in my ear? What are you putting in my ear? And then I had to put it in the little mini booth where they do a hearing test thing for me.

And I was like, I don't want to go in there. I was very confused. I was very, very, very frustrated. And I was confused and lost. And so that's really what happened for me. 

[00:10:04] Elton Brown: I noticed you are all over LinkedIn. Every time I turn around there's another photograph of you doing something. Which is very encouraging! Can you tell us, I think you touched on it briefly. But can you tell us a little more about what it is that you do? 

[00:10:24] Kellina Powell: For sure. 

[00:10:25] Elton Brown: As a career? 

[00:10:26] Kellina Powell: Yeah, for sure. So, what I do as a career, so I am a life coach, which I haven't brought up. Um, so I do one on one coaching with people who are young adults who have a disability and those who don't have a disability.

My doors are open for both communities, and as well, I am an international speaker, so I do speak about mental health advocacy. And as well, the Deaf ways to advocate for ourselves, and as well, what it's like to be a woman. So I talk about women's entrepreneurship, and as well, and also now I'm writing a second book, which I'm excited.

Um, so I'm actually writing a children's book for the Deaf community, which I'm excited. 

[00:11:07] Rita Burke: You are a busy young woman. 

Busy. Yeah, I'm very busy. . It sounds like joyful, busy, not just work busy. 

[00:11:19] Kellina Powell: Yeah, exactly. It's something that I'm passionate about, something I really love, and it doesn't feel like work.

[00:11:25] Rita Burke: So why did you choose to study psychology?

[00:11:29] Kellina Powell: Well, because, um, I actually wanted to, I wanted to help dumb people, but I didn't know what it was, and I remember. I was doing my research for a course called Careers in Grade 10 or 11. And they told us to look up our career, what we wanted to be. But the thing is, what I always wanted to be was to become a doctor.

So I remember I know I couldn't become a doctor because of my hearing. And I thought that it would be discourage to me that, um, it wouldn't be the right fit for me. So, because I thought that, um, the stethoscope, the stethoscope was going to be a problem for me to become a doctor. So I had to look at different ways I can help people.

What can I do? And then psychology came up, the first thing. And I was like, I never knew the term psychology to be honest with everyone. I was like, what is psychology? And so I got had a little girl in grade nine times, don't dunno, the real world. And so I was looking at it and I was like, oh, maybe this is something I can do.

And I did more research and I did more digging. And then what I realized was that I was actually looking for a deaf psychologist and I realized that there was none. And I was like, okay, I think this is a time for me to do it. And I did it, and I did so many great connections for everybody. And a lot of people were inspired by my work, and they said, We never met a deaf person who's in psychology.

And I said, this is exactly why I went after being a psychologist. 

[00:13:02] Elton Brown: That is absolutely amazing! Your contributions basically help raise awareness. Can you give us any stories? Of individuals, no names of individuals that you have helped that seem a betterment in their lives.

[00:13:27] Kellina Powell: Sure. Um, I did have a friend of mine. Um, a lot of, um, I've been down, um, with her mental health.

And I remember I had to work with her in terms of coming up with tools that she can do to keep herself busy. And I feel like when we have our mental health, we're always stuck in our mind and sometimes we need to be active and I remember I had to work with her and we did a couple work together where I would take her to the beach and I remember I used to do that every weekend for her and let her relax and just take a deep breath think of everything and then I told her to write anything down in front of her.

Like it's a piece of paper and I might bite everything in her mind right now. And because she's relaxing, her mind is thinking straight. She's not distracted by anything. It's an ocean. The ocean makes us calm our mind and our body. And it was perfect for her. And she won't think everything down that was on her mind.

And she said, thank you so much, Kalina, for taking your time to even help me with this. And, um, I push her a lot to do a lot of things in terms of getting her license, um, going to school. It was just amazing to see how far she had overcome in her life just because of me helping her a lot. And, um, and yeah, and then she straight up told me, Kalina, why don't you become a coach yourself?

Like, you are really good. And I was like, okay. And that's when I started to do it. And, um. And yeah, I help a lot of people in general, especially like those who are really close to me, and I've seen a lot of huge impact I have on the person's life. 

[00:15:00] Rita Burke: So you do one on one coaching, plus you speak to groups for public speaking. Talk to us about some of the groups that you have spoken with or spoken to or presented to? 

[00:15:14] Kellina Powell: Yeah, for sure. So I spoke to numbers of speaking groups, but I will speak on the recent one I did for Intenuate Teacher for the Deaf. It was amazing, fascinating, because I was actually teaching teachers how to work with a Deaf student better.

What are the tools that can be used to help them better? And I also give them a lot of feedback and advice, and I point out a lot of my stories. And as well, we learned, I have to help them to learn and understand what it's like to be in high school. And because for myself, for those who don't know, I'm only 26, so I did not graduate high school not too long ago.

So I could simply help them to understand, okay, well, how does that student What is really is it like to be in high school? So I was able to give them that mind, that mind, that peace of mind to say, okay, if this tool doesn't help, what else can I use to help the student? So I give them a variety of tools that could help the student.

And it was very amazing. I got a great feedback after this one teacher emailed me and the person that coordinated. Saying, you know, clean the story would definitely help a lot. Her book definitely helped one of the students, which was really great. And yeah, and then they said, you know, we're gonna have you to come back soon. And I said, perfect. Thank you!

[00:16:33] Elton Brown: It appears that you are successful in everything you touch and I think that is a motivating factor in you that anyone can truly take advantage of and use in order to self-motivate themselves. How do you help an individual? Who maybe they don't know what's wrong with them. I don't know.

That's not the right word, but they don't know. They know something is off tilter. So they need to talk to someone. And I'm assuming that they don't necessarily have to be deaf now we're talking about mental health. So, how do you help one figure it out? 

[00:17:16] Kellina Powell: For sure. Um, there's so many ways to help someone who don't know.

The first thing I do is grab a piece of paper. Alright, this is my favorite thing, I don't know why. I love it, it's my favorite thing ever. Grab a piece of paper, write it down. Write down things, well actually I make them do a T shirt. So one side is, what is it I'm stuck on? This side, what am I good at? So this will actually help the client to understand what it is that they're really good at and what it is that they're not good at.

And this can actually clarify for the client what it is they're really stuck on. So that the client can have a clarity of what it is that they're stuck on versus what they're good at. Because this cheat sheet will actually help the client to understand What is it I'm stuck on versus what I'm good at?

Because that way, I feel like when people, all of us, when we put too much things in our mind and don't write things down, and people, I, I learned this when I started my entrepreneur journey, it's the value of writing things down. It's super powerful because you actually can see what is going on with your mind, what it is that you're thinking about.

And a lot of times people say, no, I don't want to write things down, I'm nervous. And that's, I get that a lot. I'm nervous writing things down because I don't think I want to face my fear when I'm stuck on. And I said, you know what? How about this? Only write two for me. Let's look at two. And people look at it and they're like, Okay, I'm not overwhelmed.

That's another thing too is We get overwhelmed. We're thinking too much. We're overthinking. We don't understand what's going on with us. We don't know. And it happens to everybody. And that's okay. And I would just invite that you are never stuck in life if you are trying to find a solution of how you can solve this problem.

And I always tell people you have to shift the words. That's the key. When you're working with someone who don't know what they want to do or don't know how to figure out the situation. It's the words. How are they using it, describing it? So that's what I do. I teach them the word that they can switch it to, to show the confidence and show like, okay, I think I can shift this word to make it look like this word.

And first, it's looking at what they're good at. Like, well, you can start from this, but we can shift this to this. How about that? So it's a matter of how you can make the client shift the word, basically. That's how I do. 

[00:19:29] Rita Burke: I would benefit from that. I will tell you that. That sounds like a wonderful strategy. Now, now Kalina, tell us, um, who or what is responsible for the woman you are today?

[00:19:46] Kellina Powell: I would say it is my grandma, my mom, and my aunt. Those three ladies helped me so much to build my confidence in who I am today, you know. And a lot of times people don't know that that, well, I'm pretty sure some people would know, is that I've been bullied a lot in schools.

From kindergarten to grade 12. Yes, I know it's like, what? I've been bullied throughout my whole life in school. And it's the part where, it's actually scary because I used to lie and say, Oh, I'm sick. I don't want to go to school. And my aunts and I are not too far apart, which is very crazy. I think we're like 10 years apart.

15. Not too far apart. And so my aunt knows. So she's like, oh she's not sick. She's making excuses to go to school. And I'm like, oh no. So my aunt used to um, call my cell phone and be like, why are you not going to school or what's going on? And I told my aunt. And so she encouraged me to go to school no matter What disability do I have?

She actually pushed me and because also too, my grandmother is an immigrant grandma from St. Lucia. So she taught me that line and she told me a story of her with that. She came to Canada at 16 years old by herself and she said to me, if I can do it, you can do it. There should be no excuses. You're born and raised in this country.

You take advantage of what you can have versus what I can't have and that was something that it would trust me and my grandma passed away like for COVID and that always trust me no matter what and it's like wow and now that I'm getting older I'm a 26 year old woman. You have to be grateful for how far your family is able to take you, and that's something that I would never take for granted.

And, you know, I know not everybody has the grace to practice them the way I have. And so, it, um, but yeah, my family's the one that's responsible, to be honest. 

[00:21:35] Rita Burke: So you're walking in the footsteps of some champion women. I'm hearing, or you're standing on their shoulders, and that's, uh, there are people that are exactly in your family. Wonderful stuff. Thank you for sharing that. 

[00:21:48] Elton Brown: I want to go back to your paper system, which I think is excellent. When you're telling them to write things down, is that kind of, sort of like you having them do journaling of sorts? 

[00:22:03] Kellina Powell: Um, kind of. It is kind of like journaling, but because I just make them write two key points, and then we talk about it.

So, I don't really do too much journaling. It's really dependent on every client. Every client is different. Some clients can write a bunch of things down. Great. I will make it into a journal questioning. Right. If a client is not comfortable at all, who prefers two things, I will not push into a joint line. 

[00:22:28] Elton Brown: When you happen to be working with someone, how do you determine which techniques you will need to use in order to get that person to the next level? 

[00:22:42] Kellina Powell: For sure. Um, well, I work very closely with everybody and I always ask open end questions. I feel like if you don't ask a lot of open end questions, you will not know where the client fits in your line, right?

And for me, because I remember when I was in school, and I remember my professors always say, always ask a lot of personal questions to really understand. What type of person they are. And because I study a lot of behavior, so I understand when I ask this specific question, it can result to this type of behavior and what tools I can use.

So I always ask personal questions first because I do want my clients to get comfortable with me and I do want them to feel confident that they can actually do the work that I'm asking them to do. So that's really how I get them and fix how I get them and also figure out what tools that they can use.

It's all about understanding your client 100%. If you cannot understand your client, then you cannot help them or even create a tool for them to understand. 

[00:23:39] Elton Brown: So how do you believe your unique,, perspective, can contribute to improving mental health among individuals? 

[00:23:47] Kellina Powell: For sure . So before I started this program, my coaching program, I actually asked a lot of feedback. So I asked about 15 people for feedback. And so I actually really did my research.

I studied it and I understood what type of people I'm working with. I don't just work with anybody because if you just work with anybody, you're not going to get the result. Right. So that's what I did. I make sure that I'm doing the correct. One, ask them the right question. Two, making sure that I am giving them an example before I even start working with them.

That's another thing I ask you to do. I say, hey, for example, what if we work on this? How would you feel? Before we even do any tools together, I show clients, here's a tool that we might be working on. How do you feel? And I always tell clients, be honest and be open. Because I, the whole goal of my program is to help you become successful.

It's not just me. It's not about me. It's about you. And so when clients give me their answers, I'm able to help them with the tool.

[00:24:44] Rita Burke: You know what you're doing. I'm not sure that I could say the same thing for me when I was 26 years old. So I will be learning a lot from you, Ms. Kellina Powell. I'll be learning a lot from you. Now, what kind of feedback have you received on your book? Tell us a little bit more about the book, please.

[00:25:05] Kellina Powell: I got a lot of great feedback on the book, however, I did get a lot of negative feedback from parents who didn't understand where it was coming from. However, it's very funny because I actually just got a recent feedback on an adult who is deaf. And it was very fascinating to hear her review and she said, I understand why parents are frustrated regarding to Kellina's book. However, parents, you don't, you're not deaf yourself.

You would not understand your child's truth. And it's true. You cannot understand someone's truth unless you've been through it. And I went to this school, for example, I went to this school in Ohio, School for the Deaf. And I remember these kids came up to me and they read my book. Almost a hundred kids came up to me.

And my I just started crying. And they're like And they're in grade 12. And they're like, Selena, your book would touch me so much. I can relate to you. This is amazing. Thank you so much for writing this book. And then I got this bad review on Amazon from my parents. And I was like, this book is needed for every child.

It's It's not about you. And I feel like some parents need to take a step away and say, you know what? I can't relate to my child because I'm not deaf, and so that was the review I got on my book. 

[00:26:17] Elton Brown: You can't please everybody. 

[00:26:19] Kellina Powell: Exactly. 

[00:26:19] Elton Brown: You can only think about the individuals that you have reached and have made their lives better because of it. So tell us a little bit about the Deaf Queen boss. 

[00:26:34] Kellina Powell: I get this question all the time. So, I know. I'm very big on personal brands and people like, oh, you should have a nickname for yourself. And I was like, okay. And so I knew I had to come up with something unique, something different. No one ever heard that.

And so I remember me and my sister and I, my little one, her and I had a big piece of paper writing a bunch of, I, I knew I wanted something queen. in the name. I wanted a queen because I know I'm a queen in my community. I know I can uplift my community like crazy. And so I wanted something queen. And then, and then my sister's like, why didn't you put deaf queen?

And I'm like, Oh, it's a little short, but I want something a little bit classy. And you know, and so my sister, and I was thinking boss. And I'm like, oh, Deaf Queen Boss. And I'm like, oh my god, I love the name. So that's literally how I came up with it. Um, there's nothing fancy behind it. People always ask it.

I'm like, no, I just came, I just made it up. And I just said, you know what, let me just give myself a nickname. So that's where the Deaf Queen Boss came from. 

[00:27:34] Rita Burke: It's beautiful. It's kind of trendy too, eh? So when I want to come up with a name, when I want to come up with a name, I know where to go. I'll ask you and your sister to help me with that. Okay? 

[00:27:46] Kellina Powell: Yeah! 

[00:27:47] Rita Burke: So, so then, Kalina, what would you say is the best piece of advice you have ever been given? 

[00:27:56] Kellina Powell: Oh, I got this great piece of advice from my grandma way before she passed away. She said to me, at the end of the day, God is there for you. You have to live your life to the fullest, and tomorrow's not a promise.

And that was the best advice I've ever received, and I live tomorrow like no tomorrow.

[00:28:13] Elton Brown: So how do you encourage individuals with disabilities to use their voices to address their challenges and support one another? 

[00:28:22] Kellina Powell: The first thing I always tell them is start small. Don't go big. The reason why I said that is because it takes time and takes time to build up confidence to get yourself out there.

And secondly, don't be afraid to use your social media to promote anything that you like. Because social media can be a beautiful thing and can be a negative thing. There's a both way for social media. But I always tell everybody, especially all the disability community, especially the individual on match.

They all ask me the same question. How do I get myself up there? And I said start small. What is your goal? What is your why? Why are you doing that, right? You need to have a very strong why. And I always tell people, use your social media, go on podcasts. Podcasts are a very great way to educate people because we still need more voices in the disability community.

And I always give them an example. Myself, I'm like, look at me. Right? If you would have met me, it would have helped you to increase, um, your confidence and also it will actually help another person who needed your voice. And I always tell them, you never know who that one person needs you the most. And I didn't realize how much people are touched when I started all my platforms.

I really truly didn't. And I was like, oh my god, it touched me completely because This is what I like to do. I really want other disability communities to speak up and use social media. And I always promote their products. Or even go on LinkedIn, support them. And say, hey, how can I support you? Would you like us to do a collaboration so we can do everybody all in one room?

It would be really cool if we did that. So that's really what I do to support and my site for individuals.

[00:30:00] Rita Burke: At the beginning you mentioned that there's another book in the pipeline. Talk to us about that please. 

[00:30:09] Kellina Powell: So, another book, it's going to be a disability book, not just a deaf book, but I'm also going to make it like a little children. I don't know exactly what I want it to be about just yet, but I do know I want it to be a mixture of different disability children in the book, and I want it something like that.

I don't know, like there's a lot. I wrote like three, five different things I want the book to look like, but I don't know yet. I wanted something to be empowering for the young children to know that we're all the same. So that is my goal for my children's book. 

[00:30:44] Elton Brown: There are so many individuals with disability, specifically hearing disabilities that may not have the funds to get the help they need. How does your organization help individuals that find themselves in that situation? 

[00:31:05] Kellina Powell: So what I do is I actually come up with a pricing that's portable for my client.

Um, I do subjected. I'm a very affordable person for everybody. I do not let anybody out that door just because they don't have the funds. I'm very flexible with everybody that I meet and for them to understand because I know what it's like not to have funding, especially as a disability person. Like, it's so hard to find a disability professional.

So if someone comes to know what, Kalina, I have, for example, 100 a month I can pay you. Can you do that? I'm like, awesome. Of course I would do that. Not a problem. However, I would tell them as the years go, it will increase. So that way there's no surprises for the client. Because at the end of the day, and a lot of people don't know this, that a lot of disability income, it's not always great.

Like what they can do. Because of myself, I know. And I don't want people to feel left out just because they do not have money. And that's something that hurts, it breaks my heart. Because I've seen a lot of disability hurts in myself. who cannot get the right support because they don't have the right funding. And so, yeah, that's what I do. 

[00:32:14] Rita Burke: Let's suppose you were walking on the street and you run into a young woman, let's say she's 12 years of age, and she realizes that you are Deaf, and she too is Deaf. Have a conversation with her, please. 

[00:32:33] Kellina Powell: Oh my god, I actually did have this story before. You guys probably won't know. This actually happened to me before, so this is very interesting.

Um, I used to work at Canada's Ones line and a little boy approached me and my ears, my hearing aids were showing. My hair was in a ponytail with a hawk somewhere. I was like, oh my god, my hair is so hot. And that little boy came to me and he said, you're deaf too? And I said, yeah. Yeah, are you deaf too? And he's like, yeah, look at my hearing aid.

I'm like, oh my god. So I'm always like playing all these little, you know, little kids. Just so cute. And, um, the mom came. I'm like, I'm so sorry. Like, the child came to me, you know, to talk about my hearing aid. And the mom said, Wait, you're deaf? And I said, yeah. And the mom would spew it because she never met a deaf person in the hearing community.

And I was like, really? And she literally said to me, the fact that you just did that to your hair, you're going to make a change in the world. I can just see that. And I was like, oh, I love that. And she was just so sweet. And I was like, oh my god. And then the little boy had that color hair and it was so cute.

And I showed him mine was pink. Mine was pink, actually. And they're like, oh, you have a pink one. It's so cool. And it was just super sweet. It's literally the same thing how if that 12 year old girl came to me, I would literally have that great conversation with her. And if she asked me for advice or anything, I would give her my business card or even if her mom is there and I'm like, hey, listen, I have a one on one coaching. If you want your daughter to be coached by me, we can do it together. Let's not make your daughter suffer. 

[00:34:01] Elton Brown: That just goes to show you, uh, how true that saying is, their strength in numbers. So I'm sure I can see the young girl's face probably just lit up when she realized that there was someone else that had the same disability as, as her, but living their lives to, to the fullest, which gave her hope.

How do you give individuals hope? Who may see themselves as hopeless. 

[00:34:35] Kellina Powell: Um, okay. That's a very good question. I get that a lot. People always ask me, how do I do it? Especially if someone who don't have hope in themselves or they don't have support like their family. So usually what I do is, I always advise them different resources.

So one, I, I asked them, what is it that they're interested in? What is their hobby? Because a lot of times, there is um, a networking event they can go to. Two, usually the community, especially the community center for the deaf, they do have Um, a gathering for people who are hard of hearing, who are looking for fun.

I would, I would refer them. Also, as well, I would refer my clients to join a lot of Facebook groups to meet fun. You never know. And as well, I will also, I will always make sure that my clients have access to resources in their home, by their home. Because that's just super important that we make sure that every client has Very close to the home, especially any community center, because we, I need to make sure that my clients are okay by themselves, especially not by far from home.

So that's, that's what I really do for the client.

[00:35:44] Rita Burke: I'd like to hear more about the bullying that you experienced. There is a lot of bullying in schools, even today. And recently, I heard even at post secondary facilities, there's bullying. Talk a little bit, if you're comfortable, please, about your bullying, being bullied experience. 

[00:36:06] Kellina Powell: Sure, I had a lot of bullying experiences.

Um, I had two. The first one is from high school. I had a guiding counselor who did not believe me. To the point where she, quote, forgot to put in my grades in for post secondary. That bully. You don't believe this child can, is not capable of going to university or post secondary. And to the point where I had no idea until I got three mails, everyone, three mails, saying we cannot accept you.

And I'm like, what are you talking about? And so I was crying and I called my grandma and I'm like, oh my god, yeah, I'm like, I'm not going to university. I was freaking out. What am I supposed to do? And so my guidance counselor said take a deep breath, go to your counselor, and ask them what it is. So I did that.

I was not mad. I was crying. And my guidance counselor just looked at me like it was nothing. And I was like And I, I literally almost lost it, and I called my mom. Then my mom just took it away from me, actually. So, that did not look good on my guidance counselor. So, um, my mom showed, she didn't show up. My mom called the principal, actually.

She didn't even call my guidance counselor. She's like, that woman should be fired. Because how are you not putting a kid's grade in, right? So, I told my guidance counselor, what is this? My guidance counselor, oops, I forgot, you have two last names. I've been in this school for four years and you're telling me, oops, I forgot you have your last names.

So I said, no. And I literally, I never done up for myself before. I don't wanna tell anybody. I never did. I said, miss, this is BS. I need to get into something. What is it that you can't do? Then now I'm stuck. What? And then, so I told her straight up, you need to figure it out. What? What am I doing after high school?

And I give it to her and I said, you need to pick it up. And so I guess after the conversation I had with her, I called my mom and my mom called the principal, the principal was deprecated because she feels embarrassed, like, what do you mean? Like, she can't get into no post secondary. So my, my guidance counselor called me the next day and she said, you know what, Kalina, you can go to college.

But the next semester. I said, no, that's not what I wanted to go. I wanted to go to university. And she said, well, then you have to wait a whole full year. So literally, I was not able to go to university until the following year. And yeah, it was heartbroken. I was devastated. And the second story is my first year in university.

I, I was in a music class, and I remember I showed the professor my accommodation because every first day of class you're supposed to show your professor your accommodation, letting them know you're deaf, and letting them know that there might be a notetape in the classroom out of book size. So I did that.

And my music teacher did not accommodate me at all, where I failed. And, um, so what happened was, he kept assigning me a listening test. And I said, sir, I told you I cannot listen very well in a classroom. He said, well, I don't know, he said something about my hair. He said, oh, but you can hear me in class. But I'm right back because I sit in the front, so I can hear you.

And so, what happened was, all these listening tests, I had four different listening tests, and I failed all four of them. I did. And so, I went to my disability counselor the second time I failed, actually. The second time. So my disability counselor, she was emailing him. No response. I stuck an email. My disability counselor did not, like, she did not plan it.

She's like, I'm going to get this guy to read the messages. So finally, he answered the messages and he said, Oh, I would not appreciate if you wouldn't keep emailing me. So my disability counselor is your student twice and she came to you. She ducked. What is your problem? And he's like, well, if she failed all four of them, she can just do the listening test at the final exam.

I was like, what? So my guidance counselor told me to keep taking the courses, um, and let's see what happens. So I was devastated because I was like What if I fail this course? Then what? That's a waste of money. So, a very interesting thing happened. So I did end up failing the course. My disability counselor took it to the department, took it to the head of the university.

She was not playing. She said, this is unprofessional. That's one, two. No accommodation was taken action. Nothing at all. And my disability counselor fought for me really, really hard to make sure that grade would drop out of my transcript. And she did it. And she did it! And that profession now is suspended. Apparently I heard he was suspended after a lot and he'd been doing disgusting to students. And yeah, literally I've been bullied twice in post secondary, well in high school and university. 

[00:41:01] Rita Burke: But when I asked you about bullying, I thought you would have talked about students and your peers. I didn't know you would talk about the adults that are in positions of power. Isn't that fascinating? Thanks for enlightening. Thanks for enlightening our listeners on that one. 

[00:41:15] Kellina Powell: You're welcome. You're welcome. Like, I, I did get bullied, but not, like, harsh bully. But, you know, people would pick on me down, down, but it wasn't harsh as an adult. It was, like, mentally training for a kid who has to go through, even though we have an adult to look up to.

And it's like, especially in high school, we look up to our guidance counselor. And now, for me, I don't. And I do have a funny story for you guys, but probably two years later down the road, my high school saw my profile and they asked me to speak for my school. Yeah, yeah! 

[00:41:57] Rita Burke: The same guidance counselor? 

[00:42:01] Kellina Powell: No, a different one. So, she's a different kind of, different guiding counselor reached out to me, and so I walked into the school, and she asked me, Would you like to see your guiding counselor? So, my daddy was asked enough, and I'm like, I don't know if I want to see her, I just don't want to yell at her, I don't want to, heh heh heh.

So, my guiding counselor looked at me, Her mouth dropped. Is there a speaker in here? I said, yes, I am. How can I help you? And she just said, wow! I didn't know. And then she apologized to me right there. And she said, I am so sorry what I did to you. And then she said, Kalina, after you left, I actually did had a Grade 9 student who was also deaf.

And because of your experience, I never did it to him again. And I said, yeah, don't doubt a kid's benefit. Don't doubt the kid's belief. Don't, don't doubt. And I told her, you hurt me. A lot. You shouldn't be hurting a child like that. 

[00:42:52] Rita Burke: Well, I'm glad you had the opportunity to, to, to, to meet with her again. So she could see that in spite of what she did, she wasn't able to stop you. Hence, Kalina the Unstoppable. 

[00:43:03] Kellina Powell: Yeah. I like that. Thank you. 

[00:43:08] Elton Brown: I want to thank you so much for being with us. This afternoon, and we were able to listen to your story, the obstacles and challenges that you had to face the way that you took those challenges and turn them into something positive where you are able to help individuals with hearing disabilities, face that challenge and to prepare themselves for a full life.

Mental health is also something that's very important to you. And I love your technique of having them write things down on paper so that they can actually see it for themselves. What the problem is, or at least come up with the trend to see how it's all connected together so that they're able to pull themselves as it were by their bootstraps, uh, out and also the strategies and the technologies that you're able to use. In order to help individuals with disabilities and I think that combination is a winning one!

 I want to thank you so much for being with us, and I'm sure I'm going to see you over and over and over again on LinkedIn, which I have to admit every time I see a picture of you, I have to smile. I mean, it's this very heartwarming.

And, um, we both are looking forward to, uh, having you back on SpeakUP! International maybe a year from now, and I'm sure you'll have a ton of other stories to tell us in your journey. Thank you. 

[00:45:07] Kellina Powell: No problem. 

[00:45:09] Rita Burke: Thank you. It was a delight to have you on SpeakUP! International. And we often say to people, if you have anything exciting that you want to share, let us know, we'll have you back.

[00:45:22] Kellina Powell: For sure. One last thing I do want to share with everybody who is listening is that life is too short. You do have to live your life to the fullest. And again, like I said, tomorrow is not a promise. You have to live your life. Thank you.

[00:45:36] Elton Brown: Thank you for listening to SpeakUP! International! If you wish to contact Ms. Kellina Powell, please leave your name, your email address, and the reason why you wish to contact Ms. Powell to her email address T Y E S H I A K 1@gmail.com. Or you can DM her via LinkedIn. 

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