Ocean View Brewing Company hosts ASL event
Ocean View Brewing Company hosts ASL event
By Susan Canfora | Staff Reporter Sep 25, 2025
In observance of September as Deaf Awareness Month, and in honor of Executive Chef Maggie Williamson, who is deaf, Ocean View Brewing Company recently hosted a food and beer pairing, all presented in American Sign Language.
Maggie Williamson discusses the plans for Ocean View Brewing Company’s food-and-beer pairing, presented in American Sign Language.
Coastal Point • Submitted
“It was Maggie’s wonderful idea to host food and beer pairings — four bites served with four of our homemade brews — hosted by Maggie and Taylor Smith, our head brewer. The beer garden was full for the event, and everyone seemed to enjoy it immensely, including our staff. Our marketing director, Lauren Bigelow, helped Maggie,” Vice President of Southern Delaware Brewing Company Nelia Dolan, said about the Sept. 17 event.
Guests were invited to “grab a brew and join us” for beers paired with Old Bay buffalo wings, orange-glazed salmon bites, birria tacos and Bavarian pretzel bites with beer cheese.
“It was something I wanted to do for a while but thought it would be a better time to celebrate my promotion at the Ocean View Brewery and my community during Deaf Awareness Month. It was a perfect bridge between my restaurant and my community,” said Williamson, 29, who has been profoundly deaf her entire life.
“We are not sure what was the cause of my deafness, but I’ve always been me since I was a baby and I wouldn’t have it any other way. As a Deaf chef, I don’t often get to share my food obsession with fellow Deaf foodies, but this event was the exception. I had a fantastic time chatting about grub in American Sign Language with some amazing people. Can’t wait to do it again with Taylor, our brilliant head brewer. So incredibly proud to work for a restaurant that lets me be me,” she said.
For those unfamiliar with American Sign Language, Williamson said, “I met lovely lady named Suz from ASL connections the week before the event, and she graciously offered to provide an interpreter for the event. I spoke and signed at the same time for myself, but the interpreter was able to interpret for our head brewer.
“The event was a big hit,” she added. “Everybody asked very thoughtful questions about the food and beer pairings, and they all mentioned that they would love to have similar events like this again in the future. It was important to me to share with the local Deaf community that both my restaurant and the people I work with are very accepting and that it was a Deaf-friendly business. As an executive chef, it was important to show that there simply aren’t any barriers in achieving your dreams,” she said.
Williamson, who has bachelor’s degrees in international business and international relations, said she has no formal culinary training.
“The truth is that I grew up with two chef parents. I’ve spent my entire life in and out of kitchens, and it’s very much like home to me. Food has always been an integral part of my personal life,” she explained.
“Professionally, I started catering with Matt Haley, the founder of SoDel Concepts, when I was 15 or 16 years old. Then when I came back home from college, I started working for Fish On in Lewes. I quickly rose up the ranks and became their Meals On Wheels coordinator for nearly five years. Then I accepted a sous chef position at Thompson Island Brewing Company, our sister brewery, for three years. From there, I was promoted to executive chef at the brewery,” the Milton resident said.
“We were thrilled to support Maggie in doing something that means so much to her. We are immensely proud of Maggie, who has worked with us for many years. She has finally been afforded the opportunity to lead her own kitchen as the executive chef of Ocean View Brewing Company, and she is doing an amazing job, as I knew she would,” Dolan said.
Deaf Awareness Month “marks the culmination of over half a century of advocacy for the rights, language, and culture of the deaf community,” according to the website at www.innocaption.com.
“This globally recognized observance traces its roots to the International Week of the Deaf, established in 1958 by the World Federation of the Deaf. Over time, it has grown into a month-long focus,” the website states.