Delta flight attendant eases deaf teen's travel worries with kind note

Hope Schreiber
·Writer
A deaf 16-year-old girl says she will "Cherish" a letter a flight attendant gave her on her first flight alone. (Photo: Twitter)
A deaf 16-year-old girl says she will "Cherish" a letter a flight attendant gave her on her first flight alone. (Photo: Twitter)

A simple note written by a flight attendant to a deaf teen, who was on her first flight alone, has garnered attention online after the passenger's mother shared it on Twitter. Although it may have seemed like a simple gesture, the teenager says that it helped ease her nerves, and it's a letter she will "cherish."

Ashley Ober, of Hagerstown, Maryland, was born deaf, but as a 16-year-old teen, she wanted to show that she could be independent. While her mom, Loretta Ober, wanted to help her, Ashley insisted she was capable of taking the Endeavor Air, a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, July flight from Baltimore to Rochester on her own.

However, she was understandably nervous, especially considering she had a connecting flight at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

“I [felt] nervous because … what if I miss my flight or I don’t know where to go if I transfer,” Ashley told WJLA through an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter. “I mean JFK is such a big airport, so I didn’t know where to go.”

Loretta dropped her daughter off at the Baltimore/Washington International Airport and waited anxiously outside.

“I was waiting, watching my phone and I was thinking should I pull off, should I wait? And then the light popped up on my phone,” Loretta said.

It was a text from Ashley, which included a note written to her by a flight attendant, which Loretta shared on Twitter.

The note itself was simple; the flight attendant, Janna, explained to Ashley the buttons at her seat, how she could signal Janna for help, and what to do in case of an emergency. To Ashley, it was an incredible act of kindness, and it left her feeling calm and included.

“Deaf people can do anything,” Ashley told WJLA. “Communication is most important. Communication access is most important, to try to make any effort for deaf people, to make them comfortable instead of making them feel afraid.”

Ashley says she still has the note.

“I still have it. I’m going to cherish that,” she said.

“We are extremely proud of the thoughtful approach this Endeavor Air flight attendant took to make the customer feel welcome. Our goal is to make the world a more inclusive place, ensuring travel is easy for all people," a Delta spokesperson told the station.

The spokesperson added that in the next few months, Delta would give flight attendants and gate agents who can sign a uniform language bar which would state they can speak ASL or another sign language.

“With this improvement, customers and qualified employees will immediately be able to visually recognize when they hold sign language as a common connection,” the spokesperson said.

“We appreciate customers sharing their Delta moments with us, and applaud Janna’s thoughtfulness to help assist this first-time solo flyer,” Delta said in a statement to Yahoo Lifestyle.

Loretta Ober did not immediately respond to Yahoo Lifestyle’s requests for comment.

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