A Call to Missions

In 1997, a mother of a precious 2-year-old daughter named Audrey received the unexpected diagnosis that her daughter was deaf. Not knowing what the future held, she stumbled upon Happy Hands Education Center near Tulsa, Oklahoma— a Christian early education center committed to teaching children who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have other communication disorders.

Over several years, Audrey experienced the warm, supportive culture of Happy Hands, feeling the love of Christ through leadership and staff.

“Happy Hands got right to work and provided me with access to everything I needed to flourish,” she shared. “First, they gave me language, second, they gave me education, third, they gave us the love of Jesus—and I say, ‘us’ because not only did they pour into me, they also poured into my whole family.”

Happy Hands Executive Director Jan Pride recounts the early days of the center, opening in 1994 in a spare room of another Christian school.

“The vision for our school began when one man, Al Proo, saw the need for deaf children to have access to language in their most critical period of development— ages birth to three,” she said. “With God at the center, we continued to grow and eventually moved into a converted home owned by a local church, where we stayed for 13 years.”

Although quarters were tight, Happy Hands staff were determined to be effective in their surroundings. Each day, they joyfully invested in each child and family who found their way to Happy Hands.

In 2000, the leadership team decided to pursue ACSI Accreditation.

Jan shared the importance of this decision, stating, “We wanted to make ourselves accountable through accreditation because we want the community to see that we are operating with excellence—that we’re an open book.”

Staff were passionate in ensuring all students had the opportunity to learn who Jesus is and to minister to the parents who were taken on the unexpected journey of discovering their child was deaf.

Audrey shared how much the school has blessed her and her family.

“Jesus was my first signed word,” she shared. “I would lay in bed at night and sign Jesus over and over again. My favorite memory of Happy Hands is every morning, we would do a prayer and worship circle. We would pray, sing and dance, and they would allow the family to join. I have vivid memories of singing and dancing with my mom and sisters there.”

Al and Jan were devoted to expanding into a larger space, to reach more children for Christ. Convinced of God's provision, they steadily investigated every possibility of funding for Happy Hands.

Jan described the process as “daunting,” but they put their faith in the Lord every step of the way.

“As each step was completed, we waited to hear if we would be allowed to proceed,” she said. “Until one day, in June 2008, we were told to pack our bags! We received a $6.7 million grant from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation that allowed us to build a 20,000-square-foot facility, doubling our enrollment.”

Through the dedication and unwavering faith of Al Proo, Jan Pride, and many others, children like Audrey are growing up to be leaders for Christ.

“My husband and I accepted God's call on our lives to become missionaries to the deaf,” Audrey shared. “What we have received often from God is that He is raising up an army—an army of deaf leaders who will lead in confidence. We want every nation to have deaf leaders who will rise to the occasion and stand in confidence of who they are.”

Jan shared that her 24 years at Happy Hands has taught her how to trust in the Lord completely.

“Has our work paid off? Yes!” she exclaimed. “But have our efforts in fundraising always been successful? No! Our staff is highly qualified—deaf education teachers, speech/language therapists, and more who could easily have their choice of jobs in the public education schools. However, just like in all our ACSI schools, they are called to a mission and a ministry. I've never been prouder of a group of people as I am our devoted staff.”

To learn more about Happy Hands Education Center, visit their website.
To learn more about Audrey's missions to the deaf, visit their website.