Student Ambassador Alumnus featured on Extreme Home Makeover
Student Ambassador Stefan Vardon leads a double life. When playing sports or hanging out with friends, he's a typical teen. Once home, however, he quickly slides into the role of family interpreter.
Both of his parents are deaf, and his younger brother is both blind and autistic. Vardon himself does not suffer from any of these impairments but feels very responsible for looking after their safety and welfare, especially that of his little brother, Lance.
Vardon has always had big dreams of seeing the world. His first People to People experience two years ago took him to Australia for three weeks as a Student Ambassador. He had been in love with the culture and history of the island continent for years and jumped at the chance to travel with a local delegation once nominated.
"It was so amazing," he said. "The whole program was just a dream come true." It was a dream that would keep getting better and better, although he couldn't see it right away.
While he had been snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef and spending time on a sheep farm in the outback, he still had nagging concerns about his family back home. What if Lance wandered outside at night? Or what if there was a fire? His parents couldn't hear the alarm. What would happen to them without him?
Shortly after returning home, his mom, Judy Vardon, applied to the popular television show, "Extreme Makeover, Home Edition." As part of the application, she included an essay Vardon had written about his life. He related what it was like to interpret between his parents who couldn't hear their younger son, Lance, speak, when Lance in turn could not see them sign. He didn't see his role as a burden but was concerned about what would happen to them when he traveled, something he hoped to do extensively, or went away to college.
The dilemma really spoke to the producers of the show. "When I heard we had two deaf parents and a blind, autistic child, I thought 'How are we going to communicate?'" "Extreme Makeover" handyman-turned-host, Ty Pennington, said in an interview with TV Guide. "It helps that Stefan is probably the most mature 15-year-old on the planet. He's the eyes and ears of the family."
A crew of more than 150 ran up the walk one morning, showed the Vardons the door, and set about transforming the house into a technological dream home complete with a tactile play room specifically designed for Lance's needs, flashing-light alarms and a vibrating bed to notify the parents if Lance leaves the house or it catches fire, and an Australian-themed bedroom for Vardon. "Every time I walk into my room, it's like walking into a different world," he said. "And I know now, that if anything were to happen, that everything is set for them (his family)."
Now that it would be safer for Vardon to leave the family, everyone wanted to be sure he would have the chance to go to college. When the Starkey Hearing Foundation awarded him a $50,000 scholarship at the end of the show, everyone just fell apart. And it doesn't end there.
Vardon provided such an inspiration to Ambassador Programs' associates that they formed a new scholarship for him. "This student was so amazing, everyone was wondering how they could get involved," Program Manager Jeff Aden said. "Everyone was so touched by the story."
"This has totally changed my life," Vardon said of his People to People and "Extreme Makeover" experiences. "As a family, we're a lot happier now. This has really brought us together a lot."
