Starkey Hearing Foundation brings the gift of hearing to Uganda, with the help of Global Health Corps and Pros for Africa.
MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Starkey Hearing Foundation conducted hearing missions in four cities in Uganda last month, providing more than 4,100 customized hearing devices to those in need. The foundation partnered with Global Health Corps and Pros for Africa for the missions in Kampala, Gulu, Kasese and Kisoro, working with Barbara Bush and NFL players Ted Ginn Jr., NaVorro Bowman, Roy Williams and Tommie Harris.
Barbara Bush, CEO and cofounder of Global Health Corps, attended the mission in Kasese with a Global Health Corps team. “Collaboration is so important for overcoming health inequity around the world,” says Bush. “Our ability to dream big, ignore the status quo and achieve results with missions like this one in Uganda ensures that by working together, every woman, man and child has the opportunity to live a healthy life.” Bush will be honored by the Starkey Hearing Foundation at its annual So the World May Hear Gala on July 28 in St. Paul, Minn. The gala is the foundation’s largest fundraiser; in 2012, it raised more than $7.6 million to support the foundation’s work around the world.
The Pros for Africa team, including NFL players Ted Ginn Jr., NaVorro Bowman, Roy Williams and Tommie Harris, accompanied the missions in Kampala and Gulu. The players helped fit patients with hearing aids, changing the lives of thousands of people. “By giving hearing aids, we have blessed these people and put smiles on their faces. We were able to give them a whole new life,” said NaVorro Bowman, linebacker for the San Francisco 49ers. “This is a memory that will be with me forever.”
In Gulu, the foundation joined forces with Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe for a fitting in her hometown at the school she founded, Saint Monica’s School and Tailoring Center. Sister Rosemary was honored for her work with the foundation and Ugandan refugees at the 2012 So the World May Hear Gala.
The foundation also worked with Okello Sam, founder of Hope North near Gulu. Hope North strives to educate and heal the young victims of Uganda’s civil war, including orphans and child soldiers. The gift of hearing empowers many of these young people to achieve their full potential in life.
“This was our fourth mission to Uganda in the last two years, and we have developed great partners in Pros for Africa, Global Health Corps, Sister Rosemary and Hope North,” says Bill Austin, founder of Starkey Hearing Foundation. “Bringing the gift of hearing to those in need around the world is a humbling, life-changing experience. It is wonderful to work together with people and organizations who share our passion to show others we care about them.”
Starkey Hearing Foundation uses hearing as a vehicle to reflect caring and improve the lives of individuals around the world. Its work in Uganda is just one of the dozens of domestic and international missions conducted each year. The foundation fits more than 100,000 hearing aids to people in need annually.
Hearing loss is pervasive, affecting 360 million people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Yet, with the help of a hearing device, hearing loss can often be corrected in many cases, giving an individual the opportunity to better connect with family, the community and the world around them.
More information about the foundation’s work can be found at Starkey Hearing Foundation’s website, Facebook and Twitter pages.
About Starkey Hearing Foundation
Starkey Hearing Foundation uses hearing as a vehicle to reflect caring and improve the lives of individuals, families and communities around the world, by helping them reach their full potential. Hearing loss affects one in 10 Americans, and 63 million children worldwide, yet many do not have access to the hearing devices that can help them. Starkey Hearing Foundation fits and gives more than 100,000 hearing aids annually, and as a member of President Clinton’s Global Initiative, it has pledged to fit one million hearing aids this decade. In addition to giving the gift of hearing through worldwide hearing missions, Starkey Hearing Foundation promotes hearing health awareness and education through the Listen Carefully initiative and provides hearing instruments to low-income Americans through the Hear Now program. For more information on Starkey Hearing Foundation, visit www.starkeyhearingfoundation.org. You may learn more about Starkey on the Starkey Expo Page on AudiologyOnline.
