Jeanette Hughes has been a member of Warrington British Sign Language Choir since it relaunched in 2011.

In her first column for Weekend the Penketh resident explains why she supports the work of the signing choir and her bizarre experience meeting Liverpool striker Danny Ings.

 

WHEN I get in my car after a sign language class, I automatically turn the radio on.

That’s when it strikes me the most. Deafness means you miss out on such a wealth of words and stories in music.

That’s why I'm so passionate about raising awareness for Warrington British Sign Language (BSL) Choir.

The signing choir was first established 20 years ago and after a break it was reformed in 2011.

We still have some of the original members, some of which are deaf.

Signing everywhere from Warrington concerts and festivals to major arenas and theatre gigs with rock stars, we raise awareness and promote the use of sign language wherever we can.

Tony Horne, DJ at Wire FM, described what we do as being like a never ending tour of the north west and he'd be right.

Our last performance was at Liverpool John Lennon Airport.

It was an amazing day and I even got a selfie with Liverpool striker Danny Ings!

But – confession time – I didn’t know who he was at first.

Arriving at the airport early, I discovered Liverpool Football Club was about to land.

Now I'm not a football fan, I can just about recognise David Beckham but lots of our followers on Twitter and Facebook are.

And so, with time to spare, and with my PR hat on, I made my way to arrivals.

Lots of fans, press and police, were there waiting to greet the team.

Knowing nothing about football, I asked the nearest man if he could let me know who the Liverpool players are when they arrive and he said he would.

A few seconds later, someone whispered to me: “You do know that's the Liverpool boss?”

Oops. Still, true to his word, Brendan Rodgers pointed out Danny Ings who kindly agreed to have his photo taken.

Did I mention I also left my glasses in the car? So Danny Ings also had to find the camera on my phone and turn it to ‘selfie mode’.

It was bizarre but the rest of the day was wonderful, signing a large catalogue of songs.

We raised awareness and lots of smiles. Yoko Ono was aware of our airport signing and our work, and she had kindly sent a message to the choir, that we could sign and read out on the day.

She said: "Let’s all count our blessings and stay well as long as we can."

Another Liverpool Icon the choir had the honour of signing with this year was the wonderful Ken Dodd at Warrington Parr Hall.

Hilariously funny with every word he says, he has an energy that belies his many years of performing in comedy.

An advocate of deaf awareness himself he gave us a fabulous introduction and what better song to sign than Happiness?

Of course Doddy being Doddy, the show went on for five hours after we had signed and left the stage. It was a wonderful evening.

See you next month

Jeanette