For Deaf Child, a Good Sign

Would motorists drive more carefully if deaf children were playing near the road?

Sherri Kowertz, the mother of a hearing-impaired child, bets they would. After all, youngsters with limited or no hearing cannot react to beeping horns, squeaky brakes and other sounds of oncoming traffic.

So Kowertz, 26, persuaded Fountain Valley City Hall to post a yellow and black street sign that reads, “Deaf Children Near,” in front of her Carob Circle house.

It might as well say, “Stop.”

Drivers and neighbors have been doing double takes since they spotted the unusual diamond-shaped warning at the end of the cul-de-sac. It’s not the kind of message typically seen on Orange County streets.

“It’s an unusual sign, it grabs people’s attention, and that’s what we’re looking for,” Kowertz said.

The marker is the first of its kind in Fountain Valley and is believed to be one of a handful countywide. The signs typically are posted in front of schools for the deaf but are sometimes placed in residential areas.

Kowertz and her husband, Mark Kowertz, also 26, recently moved across town. And even though they don’t have furniture in the living room yet, they have a sign that should keep their son, Dylan, 16 months, and possibly the rest of the block a bit safer.

The couple approached city traffic engineers in December with their request and discussed the project over several phone calls. On Jan. 9, Sherri Kowertz went before the city’s Advisory Committee for the Disabled, which reports to the City Council.

Committee members gave their support for the project, and the traffic department posted the sign the next day.

“We felt it was a benefit to her and her child over there, and [drivers] would notice,” City Manager Raymond H. Kromer said. “If it helps to warn some people, great.”

Kromer said the sign cost about $35 and will be maintained until Dylan is 18 or the family moves. There was no cost to the Kowertz family.

Dylan is the kind of energetic toddler who can use a marker warning drivers that he’s around.

The curly-headed youngster--who already knows sign language for shoe, milk, cheese and other words--makes a run for the playground next door every chance he gets. Fortunately for his parents, he’s still easy to catch.

For all of Dylan’s energy, he can hear very little, especially outside. His expensive hearing aids need to be removed before playing so they are not damaged by perspiration or mishaps. The cause of his hearing impairment is unknown.

Kowertz contends that the warning sign is necessary since Carob Circle sees its share of traffic going to and from adjacent Monroe Elementary School and nearby Monroe Park.

The residents of Carob Circle don’t seem to mind.

“I certainly wouldn’t want that little boy to get hurt,” said neighbor Carol Jones, 65.

Traffic engineers warn, however, that the signs, while sometimes a good idea, don’t take the place of watching children carefully.

“There is no guarantee that the vehicle is going to heed the warning to begin with,” said David Allenback, assistant traffic engineer in Orange, which also posted a warning sign on a residential street. “The usual warnings--to teach your children to be safe when they’re out in the street--seem to be good.”