Rusty Ackerman

RUSTY ACKERMAN FORMERLY OF HAMMOND, IN Rusty Ackerman, 46, former Hammond resident, went home to be with the Lord on Sunday afternoon, October 2, 2011. Rusty, named from the flock of bright, red hair, was born on October 26, 1964, in Cleveland, OH, one of five children to Patrick and Joanne Ackerman. At 18 months, it was discovered that Rusty was deaf. His world had changed. Rusty was a fighter, though. Different from his siblings due to his deafness, he was determined to make the most of his life. Not only was he deaf, he also lacked the ability to smell. His teenage years proved to be problematic, so, he left home and wound up in Brandon, FL, at the Providence Christian School. There he excelled, even playing on the school's football team. After graduating from high school, he attended chef school and became a certified chef. He landed a job at Disney World in Orlando as a chef, then on a cruise line, and at a Hyatt hotel. He even drove race cars until they discovered he was deaf. Later he moved to Pinellas County and was hired as a chef for the famed Safety Harbor Spa and Resort. Along with his love of food and being a chef, Rusty developed into a strong advocate for the deaf. He was a member of advocate groups for the deaf, demanding that sign language interpreters be present for police stops, doctor visits, meetings, and hospital ER's. He was a regular member of the Florida Association of the Deaf. In 2000, Rusty was given an award for helping hearing impaired individuals, the Alternative Vocational Training Program. In 2004, Rusty, became blind as a result of the negligence of others and retained Tampa trial attorney, Ken Dandar, to bring those responsible to justice under the ADA. After that matter was settled, Ken kept helping Rusty over many years as he struggled in his new world of being deaf and blind until his death on October 2, 2011. His decade's long certified sign language interpreter and friend, Linda Losacano, maintained Rusty's ability to communicate by using tactile interpretation, placing her hands into his while signing. He then attended the Helen Keller Institute in New York. He was a regular patron at the Safety Harbor Public Library where he started a program for the deaf and enjoyed interaction with other deaf adults through the programs headed by Rosa Rodriquez. Rusty always knew the law when it came to deaf communications and certified interpreters. He became an advocate for the deaf and blind. He was a very intelligent and humorous independent man who now can enjoy life, eternal life, with no limitations in that very special place his Saviour built for him. Rusty is survived by his mother, Joanne Ackerman- Wiberg; brothers: Ronald Paul Ackerman and Randy Howard Ackerman; and sisters: Susan Ackerman-Strosinski, and Sarah Ann Ackerman. Family will receive guests Thursday, October 13, 2011 from 4:00-7:00 p.m. at Memory Lane Memorial Park and Funeral Chapel, 6305 W. Lincoln Highway (US 30), Crown Point, IN. The memorial service will be held at 7:00 p.m. that evening in the funeral chapel.