Recently, the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) announced that Dr. Bobbie Beth Scoggins was appointed as Interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective June 3.
Bobbie’s Facebook Page
Since 2012, Bobbie has walked through her backyard with the glorious view of Travis Lake near Austin, TX, while pondering how to fix one of several of her unfinished goals - Persuading Congress to amend the Deaflympics into the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act.
Flashing Back
On one July Sunday in 1973, the grueling hot weather caused some sport coaches to cancel the training for their athletes, who were prepared to participate in the 1973 Summer World Games for the Deaf (renamed to Deaflympics in 2001) at the North Carolina School for the Deaf in Morgantown. So, most athletes zoomed in to swim in the local public swimming pool.
After swimming, I sat on a beach chair beside Kathryn Jane “Kathy” Sallade, a returning swimmer. A 16-year-old short blonde swimmer walked toward Kathy and exchanged sign language. Kathy “talked orally” to me and introduced Bobbie to me.
When Bobbie returned to the pool, Kathy asked me to watch Bobbie in the future.
Then, Bobbie and I did not communicate with each other until Bobbie became President of the USA Deaf Sports Federation in 1998.
Why? At that time, I didn’t know sign language, while Bobbie was the purest American Sign Language (ASL) user.
NOTE: In 1979, Kathy was elected Chair of the Handicapped in Sports Committee of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).
Father, Bobbie, and Brother | Facebook Page
Deaf Father Lloyd Bridges pioneered the support of communication access for the deaf and hard of hearing in Texas. His highest accomplishment was that, in 1971, he and Jim Scoggins (Bobbie’s future husband) were instrumental in getting HB 1293 passed to allow for the formation of the Texas Commission for the Deaf — the first commission of its kind in the USA.
Deaf Brother Bryon Bridges is one of the most challenging ASL users (to me) and an ASL linguistics expert. Finally, he became a Deaflympian at 61 in 2019 when he represented the USA in the new sport of Chess at the Winter Deaflympics in Italy.
Deaf Mother Margie Lee Bridges (now at 95) has stayed active in the deaf community after her husband passed in 1978.
Bobbie followed Olympian Donna de Varona's steps in the athletic field - rising from being a 16-year-old swimming Deaflympian in the 1973 Games in Malmo, Sweden, to President of the National Association of the Deaf in 2006.
In the 1977 Games in Bucharest, Romania, she brought the only medal - Silver - home after playing women's volleyball.
Bobbie is the only deaf individual to head the USA Deaf Sports Federation (1998-2005) and the National Association of the Deaf (2006-12).
In the non-athletic field, Bobbie had worked on the following:
Executive Director of the Kentucky Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing,
COO of the Communication Services for the Deaf and,
Director of the Statewide Outreach Center at the Texas School for the Deaf.
In the first year (1998) of her being as USADSF President, Bobbie emailed me and asked me for my advice while rebellious Paralympians stormed the Capitol to lobby for including the Paralympics in the Sports Act.
In July 2001, Bobbie arranged the “Congress Day” for the USA deaf athletes, who were training at Gallaudet University in Washington DC, before departing to the 2001 Summer Deaflympics in Rome to lobby their federal legislators about the inclusion of the Deaflympics to the Sports Act.
In 2003, the frustrated USADSF president told ESPN, "I have been to USOC and disabled sports meetings, countless meetings where the Deaflympics was literally ignored, accorded only a nod as might be afforded to a stepchild. We were often isolated from the decision-making and funding process." [Note: Bobbie and Donna already got acquainted in the early 2000s]
After being greenlighted by Congress on February 8, 2023, the Commission on the State of U.S. Olympics and Paralympics (CSUSOP) started investigating the inner workings of the U.S. Olympic structure.
After the new USADSF president, Jeff Mansfield informed us that the CSUSOP invited him to testify before its public hearing in Washington, DC, on September 6, 2023. Bobbie and I fed him with hundreds of written documents.
At the hearing, Mansfield testified before the CSUSOP:
“In front of me are over 2,000 pages of documents that we have submitted to the Commission. These documents chart a pattern several decades long of deflection, dismissiveness, and denial that can be described as discrimination on the basis of a specific disability, deafness. Today we are calling on the USOPC and Congress to end this pattern and to uphold compliance and athlete safety and equality for deaf and hard-of-hearing Americans.
Mansfield holds a 2000-page document notebook
I urge for the insertion of the Deaflympics into the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act and to USOPC's mandate and for the investment in Deaflympians. As Deaflympians, we are proud to wear the letters “U.S.A.” across our chests, and today we are calling on our country to have our backs. Nothing about us without us. Thank you for your time.”
Suddenly, the CSUSOP decided not to recommend - Amend the Deaflympics into the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act-!!!!
We have wondered if the CSUSOP paid staffers and Commissioners did a peek at his 2000-page notebook.
Now Bobbie is back in Washington, DC.
“Interim” could last in one month, year, or decade!
Bobbie has to follow the NAD Board of Directors’ decisions and the resolutions approved by attendees of the coming NAD Convention in Chicago on July 1 to 6. We have no idea if any attendee would bring up the issue of including the Deaflympics in Chicago.
We hope that Bobbie will accomplish her two-decades-long request for the forgotten Deaflympians before returning to her native state of Texas by the next blooming season of Texas Bluebonnets.
Bobbie’s Facebook Page
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One More Bridges Family Member
In September 2016, my WWII tour tapped Bobbie’s non-deaf niece (and Bryon’s daughter), Kizzie Ann (Bridges) Pomilio, who teaches at Marymount International School of Rome, to interpret for me for the two-day Battle of Mount Cassino, guided by Dr. Danila Bracaglia.
I have been on the ‘Deaflympian’s Rights’ story for years and will continue covering it for as long as it takes. To support my work, please consider buying a subscription.
