The gift of hearing

The highlight of my vacation was helping a deaf boy regain some of his freedom. It all happened when I was introduced to Yvonne, who works as a missionary in Cancun. I found out she works with a deaf boy. Yvonne wanted some information on how to interact and work with deaf and hard of hearing people. We decided to set up a meeting, intended for educational purposes, teaching Yvonne how to work with deaf and hard of hearing people. We talked about the importance of having a hearing test done to see if a hearing aid would help. My suggestion then was to meet the boy, named Alfredo.

We arrived at the Mayan village, about 90 miles from Cancun. When we arrived, I was struck by the general atmosphere and poor living conditions. It made me realize how lucky we are as Canadians to live in a country of plenty. It was Halloween there also, so we brought candies, bread, baby food and a piñata. This was a gift to the children of the village. The piñata turned out to be a big hit and all the children enjoyed themselves.

Then it was time to meet Alfredo. He was a shy boy who did not want to participate in the festivities. I ventured over to give him one of my bracelets, a green elastic band. He took it with hesitation. I motioned for Alfredo to join me with the rest of the villagers to eat. He came over and I gave him my Lacroix Source for Sports training shirt. This is when he warmed up to me. During some picture taking, he grabbed my hand and held it tightly. We eventually went to meet his mother at their home (a hut with a roof constructed out of bamboo).

Mike, who also has a hearing aid, and I showed Alfredo’s mom what a hearing aid is. Suddenly, I thought about letting Alfredo try on my hearing aid. I asked Yvonne if this was okay and her response was “Why not?”

The result was astonishing. Alfredo’s face lit up and he kept looking around. It was clear that he could finally hear. He kept looking around at the different noises around him. Alfredo’s mom said “Mama” and for the first time Alfredo could hear her and repeated “Mama.”

For the first time in his life his mother and family heard him speak. That was the highlight for me, I felt overwhelmed with emotion. It felt like winning a gold medal.

We spent some additional time together. I showed him my speedskating hockey card; he could not grasp the concept of ice. I mimicked how I speed skate on ice or row on the water, he eventually understood. We took many pictures that day.

My mission for Alfredo and his family is to get him hearing aids. For this to happen, a hearing test is required. I gave a presentation at the resort the night before and we raised $100 towards Alfredo’s hearing test. This is an excellent start. I’m going to donate my old hearing aids to get the process started, include a year’s worth of batteries and a dry-aid kit. Ideally, Alfredo needs new hearing aids. My goal is to get the word out to the public, to see if we can get the funds to give Alfredo the gift of hearing.

As for myself, last year I finished fourth in Canada for the Adaptive Paralympic Rowing Team. I hope to make the World Cup in Poland for rowing in 2009. As for speed skating, I hope to attend the Masters’ Long-Track World Cup in Norway. My goal is to try to become one of the world’s top 10. -- By Kevin Frost Those interested in helping can contact Kevin Frost at kevin-nemo@hotmail.com