Minneapolis, Nov. 4, 2010 - Starkey Laboratories, Inc., a global leader in hearing technology, is proud to announce that the Starkey Hearing Foundation fit nearly 2,000 free hearing aids on underprivileged children and adults throughout southern Africa during a two-week mission sponsored by Minnesota Timberwolves' owner Glen Taylor and wife Becky Taylor.
The Starkey Hearing Foundation team began their journey in Johannesburg, receiving a warm welcome from the students at the Johannesburg School for the Deaf. From there, the group ventured on to the cities of Gaberone, Maun and Kasane, Botswana.
"The word travels quickly amongst these small villages," said Bill Austin, Founder of the Starkey Hearing Foundation. "We see a great number of patients, young and old, who have traveled hundreds of miles in hopes of being able to hear."
Some of the stories of people who were helped in Africa include a young girl from Botswana who traveled 10 hours roundtrip on a bus with her father and grandfather who both suffered from severe hearing loss. In Kasane, a family traveled 400 miles one way to help their son acquire the gift of hearing. And Buthelezi, a ten-year-old boy from the city of Charleshill, traveled more than 400 miles via ambulance to visit the Foundation team. Through the assistance of new hearing aids from the Starkey Hearing Foundation, these people among many others were sent home with the ability to hear.
About the Starkey Hearing Foundation
The Starkey Hearing Foundation is the global leader in hearing health care and is striving to change the social consciousness of hearing. The Foundation delivers the gift of hearing through missions in countries around the globe, distributing nearly 500,000 hearing aids to people in need since 2000. The Foundation is striving to achieve its goal of distributing more than one million hearing aids in this decade. In addition to giving the gift of hearing, the Foundation partners with Best Buy and the Grammy Foundation to promote safe hearing and hearing loss prevention through its national program Sound Matters. Visit starkeyhearingfoundation.org to learn more.
About Starkey®
Starkey Laboratories, Inc. is a privately held, global hearing technology company headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minn. The company is recognized for its innovative design, development and distribution of comprehensive digital hearing systems. Founded in 1967, Starkey currently employs more than 3,250 people, operates 22 facilities and conducts business in more than 100 markets worldwide. For more information, visit StarkeyPro.com or the Starkey Web Channel on Audiology Online.
