A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E A D U L T L O S S O F H E A R I N G A S S O C I A T I O N. Hear & Now

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1 A P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E A D U L T L O S S O F H E A R I N G A S S O C I A T I O N Hear & Now May 2011 Celebrating May as Better Speech & Hearing Month What: Lisa Furr from Hamilton Relay will present information on captioned telephone, mobile captioned telephone, mobile captions service.(cell phone, etc.) Following her talk, she will present a Hamilton award to Loretta Butler (See Page 3) Cake and coffee will be served. Where: ALOHA 4001 E. Fort Lowell Road When: Tuesday, May 24th, 1:00 pm till? Although nationally, May is chosen to celebrate Better Speech and Hearing, at ALOHA we recognize hearing loss issues all year. For a year we offered six workshops on Living Well With Hearing Loss. This was a collaborative effort with the University of Arizona Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences Department. There were at least 50 attendees for each workshop that offered a variety of topics. Thanks to a grant from the Arizona Community Foundation, we could provide these workshops. Every Tuesday we have Peer Support meetings at ALOHA, and additionally, meetings are held monthly except summer at Green Valley ALOHA, and a newly formed Sierra Vista ALOHA group meets monthly. Also, cochlear implant information meetings are held monthly except summer. It is known that special meetings for people with hearing loss greatly help them learn what they can do to help themselves through use of hearing aids, assistive devices, exchange of information, making new friends, and enjoying the camaraderie with peers who understand the difficulties associated with hearing loss. Please remember to choose ALOHA as your choice for a giving opportunity! CLASSES, ETC. Beginning & Intermediate Sign Language Classes and Speech Reading Class: $50 Member $75 non-member Taking Requests Assistive Device Demos: by appointment only. Listening and signaling devices demonstrated. None for sale, but a vendor list is available. Also, loop demos. Peer Support Meetings: Weekly, on Tuesdays, 1 to 2 PM. Loop amplification. Friendly discussions and info shared about hearing aids, assistive devices, inductive looping, etc. NEW! Inductive Loop Class: Free. Contact ALOHA to be placed on list for future class. Office Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tue,Wed & Thur Changed your ? Please let us know.

2 MEETINGS Desert Cochlear Connections Group At ALOHA 4001 E. Fort Lowell On Summer Break, until fall. Call ALOHA if you have questions. We also have informational materials about Cochlear Implant you can view or borrow.. If you have a topic related to Cochlear Implants that you wish to see covered and discussed in future meetings, please Jim Sipchen at JJS5977@hotmail.com To be automatically notified of meetings. Call ALOHA or info@alohaaz.org Thank you to Pat Clinch for donating CART cost for the April meeting! If you know of a funder to pay for CART transcription, please let us know! Green Valley ALOHA Support Group: Contact Ben Cleveland if you need help with hearing issues in the Green Valley area. All meetings are held at La Posada. Green Valley Meeting Dates to be announced On Summer Break Until Fall Sierra Vista ALOHA Support Group: We are happy to announce meetings have started in Sierra Vista to help hard of hearing people learn about options to help them. They meet the first Monday of each month at the SVRHC Wellness Depot in Sierra Vista Mall near Sears. The facilitator is Karl Halsten. Contact: SierraVistaALOHA@gmail.com Flyer on ALOHA website Visit our Tuesday Support Group We meet throughout the year, including during summer. The meetings are open to the public every Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Free! You will learn lots about hearing issues, including assistive devices, hearing aids, and coping strategies. Hearing Aid Bank Needs Donations: Bring used hearing aids to ALOHA, or call Joy Newman from Midtown Sertoma Club of Tucson at Sertoma can arrange to pick up the hearing aids. The hearing aids are refurbished and given to low-income seniors in Pima County. Remembering Eleanor J. Forte Free Inductive Loop Instruction Class Loupin Lou Touchette offers a class of basic instruction on inductive loop installation for homes or small areas. They are held in the ALOHA conference room. Call or ALOHA to be placed on the list to be notified of the next class date. 2 Eleanor worked at Community Outreach Program for the Deaf for many years and served as outreach person in S. AZ. She passed away from cancer in March. Many ALOHA members benefitted from Eleanor s help.hers was service with a smile We miss you, Eleanor. Rest in Peace.

3 Loretta Butler Selected for Hamilton Relay 2011 Better Hearing and Speech Month Recognition Award for the State of Arizona Presented by Hamilton Relay Loretta Butler is well known in the Arizona hard of hearing community for her tireless efforts in educating and advocating for those with hearing loss. She is the go-to person for various community related programs and offers her time selflessly in helping individuals who are hard of hearing understand their hearing loss and learn about the technology available to assist them. Loretta is the Office Director at the Adult Loss of Hearing Association (ALOHA) in Tucson. She works diligently to distribute information about new products and services available to hard of hearing consumers and is excellent in facilitating peer support groups that gather weekly at ALOHA. She has spearheaded ALOHA efforts in the captioning of local TV programs and has been instrumental in promoting the Let s Loop Tucson initiative. This initiative, led by ALOHA, was successful in supporting increased functionality of hearing aids with a legislative bill, signed by the governor, requiring hearing care professionals to inform their patients about telecoils when purchasing hearing aids. Along with facilitating meetings, educating on available resources for individuals with hearing loss, and leading other various efforts, Loretta writes the Hear & Now newsletter for ALOHA. This newsletter informs members of the community about upcoming events and other important information that pertains to people with hearing loss. She also writes articles that recognize deaf or hard of hearing individuals who have been role models within the community. Under Loretta s direction, ALOHA has expanded its activities to Green Valley and Sierra Vista. Outside of ALOHA, Loretta is a volunteer member of the Hard of Hearing Task Force, an umbrella group of the Arizona Commission for the Deaf and the Hard of Hearing (ACDHH), where she applies her experience and advises the commission on issues of importance to the hard of hearing community. She is also a member of Tucson Citizens for Better Captions which advocates for people with hearing loss. In September of 2002, ACDHH presented the Hard of Hearing Person of the Year award to Loretta, recognizing her for the commitment she has given to the hard of hearing community. Arizona is fortunate to have such a compassionate person who has supported and advocated for hundreds, if not thousands, of people with hearing loss. Loretta is truly a valuable resource and leader within the Arizona community. This leadership recognition has been brought to you by Hamilton Relay. About Hamilton Relay Hamilton Relay offers a variety of services including Traditional Relay Services, Captioned Telephone and Internet Relay services. Hamilton provides these services to 18 states, the District of Columbia, the Island of Saipan and the Virgin Islands. More information is available online at The award will be presented to Loretta by Lisa Furr from Hamilton Relay on May 24th, 2:00 pm in the ALOHA conference room. Everyone is welcome to attend. 3

4 The Value of Self-Help Groups Reprinted from an article by Better Hearing Institute According to our latest MarkeTrak VIII publication on best practices and their relationship to successful hearing aid user outcomes, only 2% of experienced and new users of hearing aids were referred to a self-help or peer-support group by their hearing health professional. When we first saw this figure it was a shocker. At BHI we believe that counseling in all of its many forms are critical to a successful consumer journey with hearing aids. As a means of stimulating more referrals to self-help groups especially for new users we invited America s expert on peer-support groups Brenda Battat, Executive Director of Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) to write a consumer piece on the value of self-help groups for inclusion in our BHI portfolio on Aural Education. In her article titled Regaining Control of Your Life Through Self-Help Groups Brenda discusses the importance of self-help groups in providing counseling and learning and sharing about hearing loss/ solution issues. She ends with: 12 reasons why self-help groups are good for you. Self-help groups: Provide a community of people with hearing loss who understand and are empathic to your unique problems Help you deal with the issues of hearing loss stigma Will help you understand your legal rights as a person with a hearing disability Will teach you coping and communication strategies Will help you to adjust and communicate your needs in a hearing workplace Will share technologies beyond your hearing aids that will enhance your ability to function in the world Will educate you on technologies and strategies for ensuring your safety Will show you how to stay tuned into family conversations Will suggest strategies for communicating in noisy situations Will show you how to accommodate your hearing loss while traveling Will empower you through exchange of knowledge, encouragement and the sharing of experiences Will alleviate the despair and isolation of hearing loss through their support Editor Note: see more information at and So, What Caused Your Hearing Loss? The ear has over 25,000 tiny hair cells to help you hear the nuances of sound. For many of us, hearing loss resulted from damage to these hair cells. With this type of loss, the higher pitches of sound are compromised, resulting in decreased word discrimination. Some causes of hair cell damage are chronic loud noise exposure, aging (presbycusis), heredity, ear trauma, ototoxic medications, autoimmune disorder, and often unknown. Scientists around the world hope to have a cure some day with hair cell regeneration. After 20 years of research, we are not there yet. 4

5 Adult Loss Of Hearing Association (ALOHA) 4001 E. Fort Lowell Road Tucson, AZ Return Service Requested NON-PROFIT U.S. POSTAGE PAID TUCSON, AZ Permit No. 879 ALOHA Board 2011: Ben Cleveland, President Pamela Wood, Vice President Bruce Stewart, Treasurer Patricia Clinch, Secretary Dede Wilpizeski Dale Henson Kathryn (Kasey) Hope Sally Hart Joy Newman Cynthia Amerman Emily Pollock Patrick Holkins Frances Harris You can reach us at: Telephone (Voice) - (520) TTY - (520) FAX - (520) info@alohaaz.org ALOHA s Internet Site: Non-profit Tax ID# ALOHA s Office Location: 4001 E. Fort Lowell Road (East of Alvernon) Tucson, AZ Loretta Butler, Office Director Office Hours: 10 AM to 5 PM, Tues. - Thurs. Please call in advance to confirm hours. Thanks! Combined Fed. Campaign #68532 Let s Loop Tucson