Sign and Us recently celebrated their first birthday! They are a Logan gym that aims for inclusion and to break down communication barrier while also allowing those with hearing impairments to stay fit and social.
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It is the brainchild of Belle Kaloshin who is a passionate CODA, or child of deaf adults, whose first language is proudly AUSLAN.
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“We went for a Sunday class and then they told their friends and we ended up with maxed out classes on a Wednesday night and a Sunday morning. It got to the point we thought we should open up a place where they could feel welcome and accepted and that there aren’t any barriers to their fitness,” Ms Kaloshin said.
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Sign and Us is located on Randall Street, Slacks Creek and information can be found on their website.
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Name: Belle Kaloshin + Ryan Kerr
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Suburb: Logan
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Job/Career/Business: Sign & Us Health Hub
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How long have you had business in Logan: Just over 1 year
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Relationship between the two of you: Partners
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How/why did you come together in your business/venture?:
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We established Sign & Us after identifying a huge gap in the health + fitness community with the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community. Especially group fitness classes, health seminars and much more. This community and other neuro-diverse communities have barriers that don’t allow them to access everyday gyms like we do and we are here to break that barrier.
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Tell us about your business/venture:
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Here at Sign & Us our mission is to break the barriers between the health, wellness and fitness industries and the Deaf and Hard of Hearing community. Through providing accessible and inclusive group strength & conditioning classes, health seminars and collaborative efforts with other allied health services and professionals, we strive to provide a fully accessible functional health and fitness space to the community while highlighting and raising awareness to the inequities and challenges that need to be addressed to make fitness accessible for all.
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How long have you been in business together?
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1 year
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Talent 1 – Belle Kaloshin
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What’s your role in the business?
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Director
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What is Ryan’s best quality/greatest strength?
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Ryan is great at being the “behind the scenes guy”, He does everything we need from admin, to pay roll, to memberships etc etc. He can also be a total boss man.
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What would Ryan’s say is your best quality/strength?
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Being an advocate for the community.
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What’s the best part about working with Ryan?
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We motivate each other to be better every day
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What frustrates you the most about working with Ryan?
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He can be quite hard on me sometimes ( for good reasons) and pushes me to be better too muchhhhh sometimes haha
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Who inspires you?
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My parents!
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Do you have a funny story you could share about Ryan?
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We opened the gym and Ryan decided he would come and join in on our first class (has never EVER trained before) so he could join alongside our deaf members – ended up in him absolutely dying and never coming back again
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Who complains the most?
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Definitely me
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Who is the most creative?
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Also me
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Who is the hardest worker?
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Meeee
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What would you like to thank Ryan for publicly?
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I would love to thank Ryan for believing in not only myself but in the Deaf community. For seeing the Community and identifying what barriers they faced each day and helping me break them down.
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Talent 2 – Ryan Kerr
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What’s your role in the business?
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Director
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What is Belle’s best quality/greatest strength?
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She treats everyone equally and she fights for people that sometimes can’t fight for themselves.
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What would Belle say is your best quality/strength?
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My ability to push others into being better everyday
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What’s the best part about working with Belle?
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She inspires me to be better and changes people s live sand I get to watch that on a daily basis.
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What frustrates you the most about working with Belle?
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I’ll tell her to do something, and she won’t listen, and then 2 days later she does it and say’s it’s a brilliant idea. She also can’t multitask so if she is sending an email or a text message, she won’t process anything you’re saying!
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Who inspires you?
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The Deaf community. Their willingness and drive to educate and advocate for themselves. They don’t let their differing ability stop them from doing anything.
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Who complains the most?
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Belle
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Who is the most creative?
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Belle
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Who is the hardest worker?
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Me
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What would you like to thank Belle for publicly?
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Not killing me just yet! But in all seriousness, for introducing me to the Deaf community and letting me be a part of their world.
