Barista Learns Sign Language to Communicate With Deaf Customer

For the hearing impaired it can be tough to navigate a world where very few people speak sign language (ASL). Every day is spent passing notes and feeling ostracized because of the language barrier. That’s why, for Ibby Piracha, a simple gesture from a Starbucks barista last Friday was so meaningful.

Three days a week, Piracha goes to his local Leesburg, Virginia Starbucks and orders a coffee. Usually, he passes a note with his order written on it and waits patiently for his drink. But this time, the barista asked him what he wanted using ASL and then passed him a note that read: “I’ve been learning ASL just so you can have the same experience as everyone else.” Piracha was so delighted by her efforts to communicate, he shared this post on Facebook.

via Facebook

For those of us without any communication impairments, simple pleasures like walking into the coffee shop and ordering a cup of Joe are easy to take for granted. But for hearing impaired people like Piracha, this simple act of understanding gave him a greater feeling of connection and belonging to the outside world.