"But without interpreters," she said, "I cannot achieve my dreams."

Depp was one of about 50 people who attended a public forum Thursday at the state Capitol Complex to air concerns about the West Virginia Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. American Sign Language interpreters attended the meeting, which was hosted by the commission's board.

The meeting got heated at times, as guests discussed their frustrations over state services for the deaf. They said officials need to better advocate for deaf people and help them find interpreters and other services.

"I feel that the commission has not been doing anything to make sure that we have quality interpreters," said Monica Kelly of Huntington, who co-founded a group called the Deaf Caucus.

Kelly said West Virginia often pays for out-of-state interpreters because state agencies won't approve local interpreters, even though they're qualified.

Her husband, Josiah Kelly, used to live in Rochester, N.Y., which he said provides much better services for the deaf.

In West Virginia, "it's like a Third World country," he said. "The deaf are treated like second-class citizens. We're so far behind."

State officials seem "overwhelmed with all the work they have to do," he said.

He and others at the forum complained about the leadership of Marissa Sanders, the commission's executive director. Some demanded her resignation.

"She doesn't understand our needs," Josiah Kelly said. "She's looking at us as a group of disabled people, not as a culture."

State law says that if possible, the commission's director should be deaf or hard of hearing. Sanders is not.

No one answered the phone at the commission's office Thursday afternoon, and Sanders did not return a message seeking comment.

Others at the forum described going to hospitals where they couldn't get interpreters.

They said they face discrimination at work and at other places.

"Often times, people think that deaf people just want to stay on SSI [Social Security Income]," said Eric Pierson of Huntington. "Deaf people want to find jobs, but many of them can't find jobs."

Carrie Guzman, who owns Tri-State Interpreter Referral Service, said it's been hard to work with the state.

"I have seen the differences between providing services in Kentucky and providing services in the state of West Virginia," she said, "and there is a drastic difference."

The commission plans to review all comments from the forum, which was requested by the Deaf Caucus, said board member Marsha Dadisman, who also is a spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Human Resources.

"It's good information," she said after the meeting. "There are real issues in the deaf community."

The board will discuss the comments at its next meeting, scheduled for May in Romney, Chairman Doug Godfrey said.

Ariel Depp's father, Paul, said there are "quite a few loopholes in our system," but urged people to realize that it will take time to improve the situation.

"It's obvious that we all are going to have to work together," he told the audience. "It's going to take more time to have meetings like this so that all of us can have the opportunity to voice the issues that we're having."

Reach Alison Knezevich at alis...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1240.