Untreated hearing loss is connected to the onset of depression, isolation, increased risk of serious falls and is now the top modifiable factor in the risk of developing dementia. To celebrate May as National Speech & Hearing Month, Hear Well Be Well is once again offering the Gift of Hearing to five people in Ontario.
For 10 years, Hear Well Be Well has offered the Gift of Hearing program to get hearing aids, support and services to those who, for one reason or another, do not have access to hearing health.
With the support of leading hearing aid manufacturer Beltone, the Gift of Hearing program has helped many Ontarians discover the sounds they were missing, helped repair relationships and improve overall health.
“Untreated hearing loss not only impacts overall health and relationships, it can also be dangerous,” explained John Tiede, co-CEO of Hear Well Be Well and a Hearing Instrument Specialist. “Severe hearing loss left untreated means you may not hear alarms, cries for help or even sirens.”
John and Kathleen Tiede, who share the CEO responsibilities at Hear Well Be Well, have been advocates for supporting the communities in which they have locations since they started working together.
“We’re so pleased we’ve been able to continue this kind of support for our communities,” said Kathleen Tiede. “It’s one of our company values – compassion – and it’s a value all the teams throughout Ontario work hard to keep at the forefront of everything they do.”
Past Gift of Hearing recipients have been nominated by family, friends and coworkers. The nomination form is available at hearwellbewell.ca or by stopping by one of the Hear Well Be Well locations.
Nominations will be accepted May 1 to May 31. An impartial selection committee reviews every nomination received and creates a shortlist based on a variety of criteria.
“The people who take the time to tell the story about why someone needs hearing aids and can’t get them plus how hearing aids will change that person’s life tend to get more traction with the selection committee,” Kathleen Tiede stated. “We can only work with the information provided so those who tell a more complete story are more likely to be moved forward in the selection process.
“It’s not a contest or a random draw,” she added. “Real people read the stories and do the hard work of narrowing down all the nominations to the final five people who are selected.”
Gift of Hearing provides top technology hearing aids, hearing tests, service and support to the five selected nominees all at no charge.