Deaf NJ Sports Fan Continues To Push For Better Disability Access

NEW JERSEY — A longtime advocate for deaf and hard of hearing sports fans in New Jersey continues to push for better disability access – and earn praise for his efforts.

Gary Noll, who was born deaf and grew up in a deaf household, was recognized as a “community pillar” as part of this year’s New Jersey State Governor’s Volunteerism Awards, earning a nod for his advocacy involving disability access at local sports events.

Watch a video of the 2024 ceremony here.

When he’s not working as a full-time scientist, Noll has been an ardent advocate for closed/live captions that capture the dialogue from announcers and broadcasters. It’s a simple move that could make thousands of people feel much more welcome when they go to see a game, the North Jersey resident says.

Another way that stadiums can reach out to fans who can't hear is to boost their use of American Sign Language (ASL), Noll says. This includes ASL during the national anthem, group performances, public announcements and other hosting duties. See Related: 3 Ways Sports Teams Can Reach Out To Deaf Fans In New Jersey

According to Noll, awareness has been rising at professional sports venues across the Tri-State Area. He’s recently given a big thumbs-up to teams such as the New Jersey Devils, the New York Islanders and his beloved New York Mets. Read More: Deaf NJ Sports Fan Says Awareness Is Rising At Arenas, Stadiums

Here are some other recent encouraging updates, according to Noll:

• The NY Yankees had over 600 deaf and hard of hearing fans for the first time ever on “Deaf Awareness Day” on Sept. 29. They expect to host again next year and in the future.
• U.S. Open Tennis had national anthem deaf performers for three events: U.S. Tennis opening night (Aug. 26), and the U.S. Open Tennis women's (Sept. 7) and men’s (Sept. 8) championship events. Picture in picture captions were included in news coverage of the events.

Want to learn about some additional updates? Check out Noll’s recent scoreboard here.

It isn’t the first time Noll has nailed down an award for his work. He received a 2019 New Jersey State Governor’s Jefferson Award for Public Service and 2017 New Jersey Association of the Deaf unsung hero award, and was recognized as an “unsung hero” this year by the Russell Berrie Foundation.

• See Related: New Jersey Makes Progress On Disability Access (8 Encouraging Stories)

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