AUSTIN, Texas — On Saturday Austin’s deaf community flocked to Nate’s in Buda to support Lotz of BBQ, a deaf-owned catering business.

It’s the third time the catering company held an event at the bar. Owner Roy Lotz said the support he’s received from the deaf community in Austin keeps him motivated to grow his business.

“Since day one, they’ve been there. They’ve supported me where I’m at now,” Lotz said. “They’re my backbone, I promise it’s no other question about it.”

Lotz lost the ability to hear when he was a few months old. He fell in love with cooking watching his father in the kitchen. As an adult, he took up cooking as a hobby before deciding to start his own business, and he never let his disability get in his way.

“I never felt like my disabilities prevented me from doing what I love,” Lotz said.

Where Lotz goes, the deaf community is sure to show up. The event at Nate’s was well attended by deaf supporters who see the importance of supporting deaf-owned businesses. The Texas School for the Deaf helped create a sign for his smoker. 

“‘The hearing community will sometimes say, ‘deaf people cannot,’” said one attendee. “Deaf people know that we can so when we see deaf-owned businesses succeed we flock in and we support that!”

You can learn more about Nate’s on its Facebook page.