Contact us by email at interpreting@alsglobal.net or via phone at 1-800-951-5020 for a free estimate on our ASL and CART services.

Trusted CART & ASL Services in Myrtle Beach, FL

American Language Services has been helping businesses and other entities reach the deaf and hard of hearing community for more than 35 years. While in-person interpreting, at one time, was the only option, recent technological advances opened the door to other options. Since we offer full-service Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), this article will be comparing Virtual American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting with Communication Access Real-Time Translation (AKA- Closed Captioning & Real Time Subtitling) known as CART.

 Please note that according to the American Disability Act (ADA) that deaf and hard of hearing community have the legal right to receive full access through the use of ASL and or CART services. The ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities and providing ASL interpreters for deaf individuals complies with federal law and promotes equal accessibility.

Some interesting Facts About the City of Myrtle Beach

• The name Myrtle Beach comes from the thousands of wax myrtle trees that used to line the beach, not the showy crape myrtles that many think of.
• Myrtle Beach’s first “locals” were the Waccamaw and Winyah tribes of Native Americans — and their legacy is remembered in the names of local landmarks and geographic features like the Waccamaw River and Winyah Bay. The area’s first “tourists” were Spanish settlers who sailed across the Atlantic Ocean with Spanish explorer Lucas Vazques de Allyon. The group founded the area’s first colony just south of the Cape Fear River, but disease wiped out the settlement within a year of its establishment. (Of course, future tourists found much better fortunes.)
• Legendary country music supergroup Alabama began its march to stardom — and eventually the Country Music Hall of Fame — in 1973 as the house band at downtown Myrtle Beach’s The Bowery, which is still open today. In fact, the band borrowed its name from a sign that used to serve as the backdrop to The Bowery’s stage. The band went on to win eight Grammys over the course of its storied career.
• Long Bay — with its crescent-shaped coastline that runs from the Cape Fear River in North Carolina to Georgetown on the Grand Strand’s southern end — was a popular spot for pirates in the early 1700s. Notorious buccaneers including legendary English swashbuckler Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard, used to hide out in the local inlets and attack ships transporting treasure. Blackbeard eventually met his demise in Cape Fear.
• The term “Grand Strand” comes from an old definition of “strand” meaning the area of land that borders a body of water. With an incredible 60 miles of uninterrupted beach, the Myrtle Beach area is certainly grand. Myrtle Beach lies right in the middle of this famously spectacular crescent of beach that runs from Georgetown County almost to the N.C. state line.
• The Shag, a swing dance wildly popular in the 1950s and 60s, originated in North Myrtle Beach. The beloved 1989 sleeper cult-classic movie “Shag” was set in Myrtle Beach and was filmed there. You can still find a beach music band and people happy to teach you the shag’s basic steps most nights somewhere on the Grand Strand. The National Shag Dance Championship competition also is held there every year.
• The 1989 movie “Shag,” which starred Phoebe Cates, Bridget Fonda and Scott Coffey, was set in and filmed in Myrtle Beach. Other movies to be shot on location on the Grand Strand include “Chasers” (1994), “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken” (1991) and “Swimming” (2000), along with TV shows “Dawson’s Creek” and “Eastbound & Down.” Recently, significant portions of “Magic Mike XXL” (2015) were filmed in downtown Myrtle Beach.
• In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Myrtle Beach was known as “New Town” — until the local newspaper sponsored a contest to give the growing area an official name. Mrs. F.E. Burroughs — the wife of the founder of development company Burroughs & Collins, which played a huge role in developing the area — won the contest with her name choice. It was inspired by the many wax myrtle trees growing on the coast (rather than crepe myrtle, which is a popular misconception).
• Built in 1901 at the bargain price of $3,800, the Seaside Inn was Myrtle Beach’s first hotel. Located on the oceanfront near Pavilion Park at present-day 8th Avenue North and Ocean Boulevard, the hotel had no electricity or indoor plumbing. But for just $2 per night, Seaside Inn guests got three square meals, a roof over their heads and easy access to the beach — the same attraction that lures people back to our stretch of the Carolina coast more than a century later.
• Longtime “Wheel of Fortune” letter-turner Vanna White was born in North Myrtle Beach, as was The Golf Channel reporter Kelly Tilghman. Other locals to go on to fame include actors Anthony James (“Unforgiven”) and Christopher Jones (“Forrest Gump”), as well as actresses Madison Iseman (“She Will Be Free”) and Melissa Wyler (“Legally Blonde 2”).
• Now home to Fuddruckers and Captain Hook’s Adventure Golf, the tract of land located between 21st and 27th Avenues North just inland from Kings Highway in Myrtle Beach was originally known as Washington Park, and was home to a harness-racing horse track that opened in 1938. Featuring a 5,200-seat grandstand and a 1.5-mile course, it later became a NASCAR track, a golf course and driving range, and home to the old Myrtle Beach Mall.
• Myrtle Beach is the mini golf capital of the world. With more mini golf courses per square mile than anywhere else, as well as being the home of the U.S. Pro Mini Golf Association’s Masters’ Tournament, Myrtle Beach earns the title. The courses are whimsical and fanciful and just plain fun, with crazy themes and outlandish holes. Make sure you take in at least a couple of games at some of the amazing mini golf courses in Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach.
• Sports Illustrated magazine was born in Myrtle Beach. In 1973, a group of Time Inc. executives visited the area by way of the old train line out of Conway, and they made a visit to the links at Pine Lakes International Golf Club — Myrtle Beach’s first golf course. While there, the group finalized its plans to release the popular sports publication, and a plaque memorializing the event can still be seen near the clubhouse on the grounds today.
• The Grand Strand hosts more than 14 million visitors each year — part of the reason it was voted America’s No. 1 summer destination by TripAdvisor in 2014. Other area accolades include the title of No. 1 Hot Spot for Winter Meetings (Convention South magazine), inclusion among Huffington Post’s Best Restaurant Cities, and a spot in the Top 10 Places to Retire in S.C. (Movoto).
• One of the biggest cats in the world lives in Myrtle Beach. The liger, a tiger and lion hybrid cat, lives at T.I.G.E.R.S., the Institute for Greatly Endangered Species. See some of their amazing cats on display at Preservation Station, their exhibit at Barefoot Landing, or spend the entire day at the incredible daylong Myrtle Beach Safari tour. On the tour, you’ll visit their amazing facility to meet an incredible array of big cats, apes, and even Bubbles the elephant, as well as the liger.

Reference Sources: Breakers

Myrtle Beach ASL & CART Language Interpreters

American Language Services is known for our high-quality, In-person and Virtual interpreters, as well as the outstanding client services we provide. We work in 200+ languages including Legal and Medical Certified and Qualified.  ASL and CART are the fastest growing languages in Myrtle Beach today a language interpreter can be a very underestimated professional in the world today. There are over 100 languages spoken in the Myrtle Beach Metro area alone. Many of us know one language, and we specialize in one field of study. Our Myrtle Beach Interpreters are fluent in English and at least one other language, and they are knowledgeable in a wide range of specialized fields including legal, medical, technical, manufacturing, and engineering.

A brief history of ASL Interpreting in Myrtle Beach

Most people know that ASL stands for American Sign Language. But not everyone knows that it is a distinct language—not simply an offshoot of American English. Though its beginnings are murky, many believe that ASL originated from a merger of French Sign Language (SLF) and local U.S. sign languages. While ASL and SLF are distinct languages, there are still some similarities between their signs.

What actually is ASL?   ASL a complete, natural language that has the same linguistic properties as spoken languages with grammar however that differs from English. ASL is expressed by movements of the hands and face.  ASL is a language completely separate and distinct from English. It contains all the fundamental features of language, with its own rules for pronunciation, word formation, and word order.  Because of the physical nature of ASL, a two-person team of ASL interpreters is required for assignments longer than 1 hour in duration.

The National Center for Health Statistics claims that 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss, though only between two and eight percent of them are natural ASL speakers.  Helping these select individuals translate the audible into the understandable is the job of an ASL interpreter.  If you have ever been to a play, a concert or watched a government briefing, you have probably seen an ASL interpreter signing just out of view.  An interesting side note is that Statista estimates that there are currently around 60,000 active ASL interpreters in the USA.

The Benefits of ASL Interpreting in Myrtle Beach

When it comes to communicating with hard-of-hearing or deaf audiences, there are a few reasons you might want to opt for a Myrtle Beach ASL interpreter over CART services. These include:

• A More Personal Connection: A real person has several advantages over a computer screen. First, human interpreters have an easier time conveying emotion. Second, they are better equipped to point out speakers and assist with pronunciation issues. Finally, an interpreter gives a deaf or hard of hearing person a chance to bond with another person.
• Enhanced Speed: Skilled interpreters can hold pace with even the fastest speakers. Lack of delay makes it easier for deaf and hard of hearing individuals to keep up with the conversation.
• Cost Effective:  While costs range by the type of ASL you need (Legal, medical, business, etc.) and when the assignment is scheduled, the cost off ASL, across the board, is less money than CART.

What Is CART?

While the majority of people know what American Sign Language is, the same cannot be said for Communication Access Real-Time Translation. Often referred to as CART, this communication method for the deaf and hard of hearing is best described as subtitling for live discussions. Unlike ASL, which relies on a professional interpreter, CART services are provided by a well-trained stenographer or transcriptionist. They transcribe anything said and then broadcast the resulting text to a phone, computer, or TV screen.

CART is often seen as a cost-effective and efficient way to ensure everybody can follow along. While often used to help deaf students in the classroom, CART captioning benefits anyone that can read.  Much like ASL interpreting, it can be done both onsite with a physical transcriptionist or remotely with an offsite one.

Why You Should Consider CART for the Myrtle Beach Market

Communication Access Real-Time Translation is growing in popularity due to the following characteristics:

• It Serves a Wider Array of Deaf People: If you do a little math, you will realize that 65 percent of hard-of-hearing people in the USA do not speak ASL fluently. CART makes it so these people can join in on the conversation as well.
• CART Makes It Scalable: While people in the front rows can easily make out what an interpreter is signing, it gets harder as the distance increases. Since captions can be beamed to multiple screens simultaneously, they do not have to factor speaker distance into the equation.
• The Text Provides a Written Record: Having a transcript of everything your professor said would be a godsend come finals. Having a record of a meeting can also provide clarity to all those involved as well. The physical nature of CART recording makes that possible. This ability is one reason so many college students opt for CART over traditional ASL interpreting. 

About American Language Services

Founded in 1985, American Language Services was there to help pioneer the rise in remote ASL interpreting options. Our dedication to quality and client satisfaction in interpreting allowed us to shift from a one-woman agency into one of the most successful language agencies in the world. Our language experts provide ASL & CART interpreting services to people all around the world. Because of our 24/7 availability, you’ll never have to worry about us not being available, on off times, for an assignment.

AML-Global has some of the most impressive linguistic talents in the world. These highly skilled language professionals are recruited, screened, and tested to ensure high-quality work.

Contact us by email at interpreting@alsglobal.net or via phone at 1-800-951-5020 for a free estimate on our ASL and CART services.