Millersburg Rotary event to benefit kids with hearing loss
The members of the Millersburg Rotary Club will host a fundraiser Thursday, July 17 at the American Legion in Millersburg called Rotary Flingo, a bingo game that is designed to raise funds to help provide hearing aids or other auditory enhancement devices for children in Holmes County who are hearing impaired.
Hearing aids in older adults are quite common, but what many people don’t realize is hearing loss among children is a growing concern. Hearing loss at that age can have devastating effects on the growth and development of a child.
As a way to help combat that, the Millersburg Rotary Club will host a fundraiser Thursday, July 17 at the American Legion in Millersburg called Rotary Flingo, a bingo game that is designed to raise funds to help provide hearing aids or other auditory enhancement devices for children in Holmes County who are hearing impaired.
“This is a fundraiser to raise money for Holmes County youth who are in need of a hearing aid,” Rotary member Marianne Mader said. “This is about providing an improved quality of life for the child.”
Mader said recently, there was a change in the Ohio Legislature that requires every insurance company to provide some funds toward the hearing aids.
“Earlier this year Ohio passed Madeline’s Law that requires private insurance companies to fund hearing aids for youth, up to $2,500 per hearing aid to a maximum of $5,000 for a pair,” Mader said. “Even with the help of insurance, families often struggle because of their deductible and paying for items not covered by insurance such as batteries, accessories and repairs.”
The Rotary’s goal is to provide financial support of up to $1,000 per child to up to five Holmes County children for purchase of hearing aids or other auditory enhancement devices per year.
Mader said this topic was brought to the attention of the Rotary members because both of a member’s children required hearing aids.
Like many children, their plight was not discovered until later in their childhood, and the loss of hearing went undetected until it became more of a problem.
That spurred the Rotary to action, and the fundraiser was the product of their effort.
Donation to the event is $50 and is payable at the door, and the donation will include a meal, a bingo card and dabber. There also will be a cash bar, with all the proceeds benefiting the Rotary fundraiser.
The Rotary Flingo event will offer winning bingo cards a variety of prizes and cash. Additional cards will be available for purchase for those bingo players well versed in scanning multiple cards at one time.
“We really encourage community members to come. This isn’t meant to be just a Rotary member event,” Mader said.
The doors will open at 5 p.m. when people can come in, mingle and get something to eat, with the bingo game beginning at 6 p.m. Mader said the fun should last until around 9 p.m., which should provide parents with children a chance to get out for a fun evening without getting home too late.
The evening will have a flamingo theme, the flamingo representing the fun of summer.
One other thing that comes free during the event is all the fellowship and fun that will take place.
“We will have a lot of fun, but the main focus will be on these kids who are in need of hearing aids,” Mader said.
Mader said schools learn of hearing issues in their children through public screenings and are advised to follow up with an ear, nose and throat physician, which can add to the growing expense, especially with no ENT located in the county.
Mader said helping families financially cope with the expenses of hearing aids is something the Rotary members were passionate about pursuing.
Fitting children with hearing aids early opens the door to language, learning, emotional well-being and social inclusion. Without intervention hearing loss can have lifelong negative consequences, but with timely action, children can thrive and meet their full potential.
The brain is most receptive to developing speech and language skills during the first few years of life. Children with untreated hearing loss often experience delays in spoken language development, vocabulary acquisition and speech issues.
Hearing also is essential for learning, especially in classroom settings where much of the instruction is verbal. Children without appropriate amplification may struggle with literacy and reading comprehension and fall behind in academic performance compared to peers.
Hearing also can be crucial for social interaction. Children with hearing loss may have difficulty making friends, understanding social cues and participating in group activities. Without the hearing aid support, children may experience loneliness or behavioral challenges due to frustration or miscommunication.
For more information about the fundraising event or about financial support for hearing aids, email Millersburgrotary@gmail.com or call Katie at 330-263-6363.