Beautiful: An Entire School Pulls Together to Communicate with One Lonely Student

Aimee Herd : Apr 14, 2026
CBS News

"You could just watch his world open up with communication. It was amazing." -Cheryl Ulicny, teacher's aide

(Campton, NH) — [Breaking Christian News] A 7-year-old first grader in New Hampshire is reaping the fun benefits of communication with his friends, after the actions of one brought about a monumental change for good in his world. (Screengrab image: via CBS News)

Ben O'Reilly is deaf, with other special needs, and—being the only deaf student in the district—he was feeling quite alone and sad.

"He didn't have relationships with his peers or teachers, for that matter," said his aide, Cheryl Ulicny.

But, according to a CBS News report, a beautiful transformation began with one of the children in Ben's Campton Elementary School; Reid Spring.

Reid started to learn a little sign language.

"If he's your friend, you can play with him. And he's my friend," Reid explained.

That little spark started a wildfire of interest among classmates, and soon the rest of the class wanted to learn sign language as well.

CBS News notes, the endeavor extended to teachers, and eventually other grades were learning to communicate by signing.

Now, nearly everyone in the school knows at least some sign language, and Ben is loving being able to chat with his friends.

Says Ulicny, "You could just watch his world open up with communication. It was amazing." Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

Click Here to watch the CBS News report on Ben.