Hope Channel, a television and online ministry of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, has launched a new internet channel for deaf audiences. Hope Channel Deaf will provide programming captioned or signed in English, Portuguese, Spanish, French and German.
In a media release today, Larry Evans, Assistant to the President for Deaf and Special Needs Ministries, wrote, "It is with a great deal of excitement that we can now announce that the long-awaited launch of the new internet Hope Channel Deaf is a reality!" Evans called the launch a "historical mark in the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s ministry" to provide programming for and by deaf individuals.
Evans credited a financial grant from Versacare, technical support from the Hope Channel and the deaf community for seeing the project through, calling deaf individuals a "marginalized and unreached people group."
"It is clearly the providence of God that has opened so many doors to make this announcement possible," Evans said.
The release singled out Amanda Colgan for praise. Colgan is a deaf woman who served as an adviser, has provided technical support for the project. Colgan and other Deaf members will serve as overseers of the new Hope Channel Deaf helping to ensure that content corresponds with the needs interests of deaf viewers. Colgan will also serve as the web content manager of the Adventist Deaf Ministries International website.
Evans estimates that only 2%-4% of the deaf community in the United States are Christian.
Hope Channel Deaf at time of launch was already populated with video segments featuring Sabbath School discussions for adults and children, devotionals, nature programs and videos from the 2015 General Conference Session in San Antonio, Texas. The channel also provides a subtitled edition of "Tell The World," a cinematic depiction of the foundation of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in six episodes.
Jared Wright is Manging Editor of SpectrumMagazine.org.
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