Kota Kinabalu: Eleven-year-old Jane Christine Justine and more than thousand others with hearing disabilities were able to hear sounds for the first time, Friday.This was made possible by the US-based Starkey Hearing Foundation which expanded their global effort of offering hearing aid devices to more than 1,300 children, adults and senior citizens, here.
Jane who had lost 80 per cent of her hearing capability at age three, had come along with her parents, Mercy Sandalle and Justing Guntowong, and dozens of her schoolmates from the Tuaran Special Education Primary School.
This was the foundation's second visit to Sabah after being here in March and April earlier to create ear moulds of all the recipients. Sabah is one of the two states in the country targeted by the Foundation's mission after completing their task in Penang previously.
Jane's mother, Mercy said hearing devices were expensive with the normal market price ranging from RM3,000 a piece. They cannot afford Jane a pair as her husband works for the State Railway Department.
"We asked whether we could purchase only one. The doctor said that was not right. Having such effort like this really saved us a lot of money," she said.
State Community Development and Consumer Affairs Assistant Minister Anita Baranting also raised the same concern, saying many are not able to afford the luxury, although most hearing impaired individuals are not necessarily "mute".
She thanked the Starkey Hearing Foundation, saying their philanthropic work should serve as an example for others.
Founder Bill William F Austin said the Foundation had to raise some US$100 million annually to conduct their humanitarian work.
And so far they have distributed more than a million devices worldwide covering China, India, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Philippines and Vietnam.
Statistics from the State's Welfare Department revealed there are about 26,000 registered disabled individuals, with 3,514 of them hearing impaired.
Others disabilities include physical (8,760), learning (10,202), vision (2,522), speech impediment (101) and others (903), Baranting said.
