Posted On: September 2, 2008

Deborah Davis describes her two young daughters with hearing loss as "fighters who refuse to be left behind." Her story makes it clear where daughters Sydney, 7, and Maycee, 6, get at least some of that fighting spirit.

Maycee Davis was 5 years old when a hearing test verified she had the same mild-to-moderate hearing loss as her middle sister, Sydney. Meanwhile, after 4 years of use and an inadvertent dip or two in the pool, Sydney's analog hearing aids were failing. Sydney-who takes pride in being a good student-was crying daily because she couldn't hear her second grade teacher. Deborah and husband, Aaron, girded themselves for a budget wreck.

"We weren't poor enough to get help from the state," remembers Deborah, "but we weren't rich enough to afford $6,000 plus for two pairs of hearing aids." Her own career as a teacher increased both her knowledge of how vital good hearing aids are for kids and her agony at being caught in between. Convinced that there must be a government agency or private foundation out there somewhere that would help, Deborah began an exhaustive search.

"I tried every-where," she says.

"There was nothing I could find for working class people like us." Her efforts to secure help even included a personal letter to each member of the Washington State Legislature. After months of dead ends, a string of search words entered on the Internet landed her at our Web site. She called immediately and the news was good.

Through AUDIENT alliance partners Phonak Inc., USA, and Kelly Hofferber, AuD, CCC-A, of Tri-City Ear, Nose & Throat in Kennewick, WA, the price for two pairs of Una M AZ digital hearing aids and related professional care totaled $3,100-less than half the amount the family had expected to pay. Though fitting fees helped cover the cost for some of Kelly's time, they are not her motivation for joining the AUDIENT network of participating hearing care providers. "Where help is needed, I believe in helping financially," she says simply.

And has that help ever delivered results!

"Sydney has gained enormous confidence," says Deborah. Closer connections with classmates fuel some of this growth. With her old analog aids, Sydney struggled with social interactions during noisy times like recess and lunch. "When it got to be too much for her she would just shut down," Deborah remembers. "She's not doing that anymore."

More improvements came in the classroom. The new hearing aids, coupled with an FM system that would not have worked nearly as well with analog aids, ended Sydney's tears of frustration at not being able to hear the teacher. She is back to thriving in class and has more fun in school than ever before.

Younger daughter Maycee has also made big strides since receiving her hearing aids. Perhaps because she was able to piggyback by following the lead of Sydney and oldest sister, Paytin, 9, Maycee's own hearing loss was not detected until age 5, when behavior issues gave her away. A hearing test confirmed what a teacher and parents had come to suspect: Maycee was not hearing nearly enough of what parents and teachers were telling her. Now equipped with hearing aids, she often asks for clarification to requests she doesn't understand and responds much better to direction.

With Sydney and Maycee each thriving as never before, Deborah now sets her sights on a new challenge: "I'm very thankful for AUDIENT," she says. "I know there must be a lot of working families out there stuck in situations like ours and I would love to see other kids get help. Just let me know what I can do to make more people aware of your program."

Mission accomplished, Deborah. Thank you for sharing your story.

Sharon Kerpel is director of operations at AUDIENT, an alliance of providers, suppliers and resource partners supporting local communities nationwide. For more information: 877-AUDIENT (283-4368), http://www.audientalliance.org/, info@audientalliance.org.