We’ve been enjoying watching Hearing Solutions participant and former professional baseball player Tyson Gillies compete on The Amazing Race Canada.

Partnered with fellow baseball development coach Michael Crouse, the duo wants to use the prize money to build a sports facility for kids.

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Liana works as a barista at a coffee shop, and she also works with her local chamber of commerce. At the coffee shop, it’s a fast-paced environment taking customers orders, while at the chamber of commerce, she manages memberships and has to communicate with local businesses. She has a cochlear impairment in both ears.

“I don’t hear well at all,” she shares. “[It] causes errors and miscommunications at work with members, customers, and peers.”

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John works as a chef at a private school in Vancouver, providing food for about 1,000 students. He has severe hearing loss in both ears.

“This makes it very difficult for me to understand and communicate with my supervisors, co-workers, and clients,” he shares.

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Ihor came to Vancouver about a year ago as a displaced Ukrainian. He soon found work as a prep cook and dishwasher at a local Ukrainian restaurant, taking pride in his new job. However, he was recently diagnosed with hearing loss in both ears and tinnitus, which was making his job more difficult.

“I work in a loud and noisy environment filled with all sorts of equipment,” he shares. “My main concerns include my inability to hear people, even in a quiet environment, and follow their instructions, not being able to hear if the dishwasher is on or off, if water is overflowing in the bucket, if the alarm system is on or off, if the work equipment is working or not.”

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Denise works for a supportive housing program in Kelowna as a Home Support Worker, serving a diverse population, including persons with mental illness, substance abuse disorders, and trauma. She was recently diagnosed with hearing loss in both ears.

“It has severely impacted my ability to communicate effectively over the years,” she shares. “[I work in] a position of support to participants in daily living, and that is all about communication. The ability to truly listen, learn, comprehend, and assess what the participants needs are is imperative. Not being able to hear and decipher in communicating with both clients and co-workers has been embarrassing, frustrating and created anxiety with many barriers.”

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WorkBC Assistive Technology Services has been helping Hailey get the assistive technology she needs as she works to find employment. Hailey has cerebral palsy, which makes her speech soft and she uses a power wheelchair.

“I have many physical barriers that challenge me daily and make finding employment very difficult,” she shares.

Hailey was working with her employment counsellor at NEXUS Community Support Society when they reached out to WorkBC, who referred her to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services. A WorkBC Assistive Technology Services occupational therapist came to Cranbrook to provide an assistive technology and ergonomic assessment.

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Andrea recently completed training to become a social and community service worker, and is looking for employment in that field. She has hearing loss, which makes it difficult to communicate without hearing aids.

Having received skills training from WorkBC, she was referred to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for funding for a new set of hearing aids.

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Over 35 years as a flight attendant, Wanda faced difficulties because of her hearing loss. During the pandemic, mask wearing made it even tougher to read lips, and she retired early.

“Financial constraints made acquiring new hearing aids impossible,” she says.

Still looking to work, her audiologist at Island Deaf and Hard of Hearing Centre referred her to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for funding for a new set of hearing aids.

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Today officially marks our 40^th anniversary! We couldn’t be more grateful to all of our participants, volunteers, supporters, partners, and everyone who has helped us on our journey to 40 years of impact.

When 21-year-old university student Neil Squire was paralyzed in a car accident, his cousin Bill Cameron, an engineer, worked with a small group of volunteers to create a device to help Neil speak. Before long, Bill realized that his mission was bigger than just helping family. When Neil passed away in 1984, a non-profit organization was formed in his name. Forty years later, Bill’s legacy continues, and Neil lives on everyday in the work we do.

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It’s hard for me to believe that we are 40 years in and counting. In some ways, it doesn’t seem that long ago that I was working with Neil as he was learning Morse code with his state-of-the-art Apple IIe computer — it had 64 KB of memory, and believe it or not, that was considered massive for a personal computer. (Compare that with the memory on your smart phone right now just to put it into perspective).

As we celebrate 40 years of impact, it had me reflecting on my early days working with Neil even before the organization was formally founded, and one particularly important lesson I learned early on.

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