SIUE Senior Assignment Provides Hearing Aids to St. Louisans
According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 48 million people in the United States have trouble hearing with at least one of their ears. Although hearing aids are the most common treatment for hearing loss, the small electronic devices are often costly, meaning many Americans go day-to-day with impaired hearing.
Tackling this issue is Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Jacqueline Butler, an integrative studies major with focus areas in sociology and psychology, who made use of her senior assignment to help those with hearing loss locally. On Saturday, Sept. 25, she hosted the 2nd Annual Miracle-Ear Mission, a charity drive held at Busch Stadium with the goal of testing, fitting and donating 300 free Miracle Ear brand hearing aids and service to residents in the Saint Louis and Metro East area who don’t have the resources to get hearing aids.
“We were able to fit nearly 100 individuals with free hearing aids and provide a lifetime of free service for those hearing aids,” Butler reported. “A few recipients have reached out to me to thank me, a couple of them in tears from the experience. One person said, ‘You gave me back my world.’”
Butler, of Belleville, was inspired by the 1st Annual Miracle-Ear Mission that took place last year in Selma, Ala. After asking the human resources manager for Miracle-Ear Midwest to hold a similar event, plans to host the St. Louis Annual Miracle-Ear Mission were underway.
“Being a resident of St. Louis, I understand the poverty rate and number of individuals on medical assistance in the area,” explained Butler. “Missouri Medicaid offers no hearing coverage. Unfortunately, for many St. Louisans with hearing loss and no means to pay for hearing aids, they must live without hearing—something many take for granted.”
Butler hopes to incorporate what she has learned from this experience into her career goals. “When I graduate from SIUE in spring 2022, I hope to continue my work with Miracle-Ear Midwest and the Miracle-Ear Foundation, perhaps making events such as the Miracle Mission happen more often,” she said.
The Miracle-Ear Foundation, together with their donors, provides tools that empower underserved Americans with hearing loss to enhance their life experiences through the gift of sound. The Miracle-Ear Foundation is a Minneapolis-based non-profit and works to provide hearing instruments to qualified applicants across the United States and Puerto Rico. To learn more about the Miracle-Ear Foundation, visit miracle-ear.com.
Photo: (L-R) SIUE’s Jacqueline Butler, an integrative studies major, stands with her regional manager, Nikki Roseroyce, at the Miracle-Ear Mission event in St. Louis.
