In a family with a rare gene that could cause deafness, Karen Putz knew the value of living life to the fullest. “I was born with normal hearing,” she explained. “My mom and all of her siblings were deaf or hard-of-hearing, thanks to a super-rare gene.”
She watched one older sister become deaf after a fall, another sister lose the little hearing she had left following an accident, and three brothers become hard-of-hearing in adulthood.
Even so, Putz embraced life and all it had to offer. Especially when it came to water sports – Her father taught her to water ski at the age of nine. “When I was eleven, my family bought a cottage with a guest house on Christie Lake in Michigan. I started water skiing every summer and learned to barefoot water ski when I was seventeen,” she said. “Two years later, I was barefooting and trying to cross the wake–I took a hard fall.”
When she climbed back into the boat, she was deaf but didn’t realize it at first and thought she had water in her ears. “I pretty much abandoned the sport afterwards–I did the occasional barefoot run but I was cautious,” she said. “I took up volleyball and traveled with a deaf team for twelve years.”
Adjusting to life as a newly deafened individual was a difficult transition for her to make. “Those first days and months were very rough,” she explained. “I had just transferred to Northern Illinois University and discovered they placed me on a ‘deaf’ floor in the dorm. When the elevator opened, I saw people signing. I did not know sign language, and I had spent my entire life hiding my hearing loss.”
Several years later, Putz revisited her passion for water sports, hoping to face her fears. “The day before my forty-fourth birthday, I tried to barefoot again. Couldn’t do it. I was so sad and I cried, thinking that midlife sucked and I should have enjoyed barefooting when I still could do it,” she said.
Her husband, Joe, saw a TODAY featuring Judy Myers, age sixty-six, barefoot water skiing. Myers started when she was fifty-three. Karen Putz reached out to her and was invited to Florida. There, she trained with Keith St. Onge, a two-time world champion in barefoot waterskiing.
“I got up on my first try. I returned to Florida three weeks later, and barefooted again. I ended up writing Gliding Soles, Keith’s book,” she said.
Her writing didn’t stop there. “When my youngest son was three, my husband bought a computer. I started writing online for various websites and getting paid for it,” she said.
She moved on to writing, and self-publishing, books. “I had always envisioned myself writing books. Yet, I never pursued the book writing path–I kept putting it off. I was passionate about barefooting and was planning to compete in tournaments. Problem was that the information was not organized–it was all over the place,” she said. “I was confused about the process and the scoring system. I figured if other people were confused like me–they would benefit from a book explaining it all.”
She gathered information from all the World Champions and instructors and competitors and wrote a book in 2012 entitled Barefoot Water Skiing: From Weekend Warrior to Competitor. “It is still selling today!” she said, “I’ve self-published and also published with a New York publisher.”
Putz, who lives in New York, also founded Deaf Academy, which offers courses in American Sign Language (ASL) online. The online learning platform focuses on personal growth and is done completely in American Sign Language. “I got the idea after doing so many workshops in schools with deaf and hard of hearing students,” she said. “I wanted a place where adults could continue their learning in a personal way.”
But she didn’t stop there. “I started a nonprofit with three other deaf individuals, Deaf Senior Services Coalition, and we are focusing on making housing and health care accessible for those who are 55 and older, whose language is primarily ASL,” she said. She and her husband are launching their first lake house Airbnb, Barefoot Haven, which will be available in 2026.
Looking back, Putz understands that even though she faced barriers in life, they were not meant to be the end of her goals or her happiness.
“There are blessings or lessons in every challenge or barrier that you face. Turn your turmoil into triumph–reframe the story of your life so that you can have joy in the journey,” she said “You were born to stand out–not to fit in. Use your unique talents, gifts, and skills to create a Passion Path that fits YOU. Shine in your own brilliance!”
Learn more about Karen online at these links:
www.karenputz.com
www.yourpassionschool.com
www.deafacademyonline.com
www.parentcircledeafhh.com