“I had a mentor say to me, that when bad things happen good people stand up, so I felt like standing up,” Allyson Schiff commented as she stood in the rain volunteering on a Saturday morning.

Whether sunshine or pouring rain, that’s what Allyson Schiff does.

What You Need To Know

  • At the start of the pandemic, Schiff volunteered with City Harvest, inspiring her to quit her job and begin working at another non-profit.

  • Schiff noticed that Rosa didn't have anyone who could communicate directly with her so she took it upon herself to learn sign language.

  • Now hundreds of words later it's hard to say who is more grateful for the change, Rosa or Allyson.

As the pandemic sent New York City into a temporary state of confusion and chaos, Schiff did her part. She “stood up” and joined City Harvest’s call for volunteers.

Now two years in, she never plans on stopping. But that’s not where this story ends.

“So coming through the mobile market here we see people from all walks of life, all ethnicities, speaking different languages and Rosa was like nobody I had ever seen here before,” Schiff said.

“Every time she came I realized that nobody else knew how to commute in sign language," Schiff said. "So I went home and said, ‘I’ll do it!’”

With no in person classes to aid her, Schiff scoured the internet for online sign language lessons, practicing in front of the mirror every night. In the last six months she’s learned almost 200 words. All with Rosa in mind.

“The first time I was able to communicate with Rosa beyond something simple like ‘thank you’ she actually stopped in her tracks…and it was the greatest moment of my life at that point really. Just seeing how happy she had become just knowing that somebody could communicate with her. I think I can only compare it to how happy I was to be able to do that for her,” Schiff said.

Though their communication isn’t perfect. The gratitude and joy are easily translated by everyone.

“It’s changed a lot for me and my life in such an amazing way and really it’s due to this incredible women,” Schiff said.

For putting out both hands and standing up, Allyson Schiff is our New Yorker of the Week.