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JuneMeeting
Monday, June 13, 2016
5:30 PM H.O.P.E. Discussion Group Meets
6:30 Meet & Greet Social Time
7:00 Brief Meeting & Program
“Disaster Preparedness for People
with Hearing Loss”
Melani Kaplan, Human Services Coordinator,
Office for Deaf & Hard of Hearing and members
of the Disaster Preparedness Committee for Peo-
ple who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing and Deaf/
Blind will share information about a “Be Pre-
pared Protect What Matters” tool kit that has
been developed by the committee.
People with hearing loss have some unique needs
when it comes to emergency situations. This is
an excellent opportunity to learn how to prepare
from people who have researched this topic.
Come to learn and bring a friend!
Fox Valley Chapter News Volume Issue 4 ~ June 2016
Chapter meetings are held at the
Appleton Unitarian Universalist
Fellowship. Address: 2600 Phillip
Lane. Map available at:
www.fvuuf.org NOTE: HLAA is
not affiliated with UUF. We ap-
preciate being able to use their
accessible facility. (HLAA is not af-
filiated with any religious entity.)
On a perfect spring day, May
21st, the 2016 Milwaukee Walk4Hearing was held
at Greenfield Park. Thanks to the efforts of teams
from many organizations whose missions relate to
hearing loss, the event generated nearly $43,000 in
donations. HLAA Fox Valley had 2 teams this year;
the Fox Trotters, and Fox Valley CI Group. Togeth-
er, our two teams raised over $1200.
Wisconsin’s
Walk4Hearing
Report - 2016
Colleen Van Rooy &
Rhonda Clancey
captained the “Fox
Trotters” & the
Cochlear Implant
Team, respectively.
These four Foxy
Ladies enjoyed
the day. Pictured:
Colleen, Rhonda,
Kerry & Mary
with their foxy
tails!
This lucky family won a bird themed prize basket that was put
together and donated by Fox Valley Chapter. Notice
the terrific face painting on the kids! The kids at the
Walk were having a great time and so were the adults.
Lets aim for a bigger crowd at the 2017 event! Thanks
to Rhonda Clancey for collecting items for the basket.
Chapter Leader’s Message...
In my job as a captioned phone installer, I meet many people with hearing loss. Not only do I install their phone and teach them how simple it is to use, I also provide help-ful information and lend a sympathetic ear. I learn a great deal from my customers about the challenges they go through.
Let me give you just one example. Whistling! If your hearing aid is whistling, do go back to your hearing specialist and get it checked! It might be time to upgrade your ear mold, or it might be the hearing aid itself. And trust me, people will look at you weirdly because your ear is whistling.
Whistling is nothing new to people like me since I have worn devices for over 40 years. It's all routine to me, but to a new hearing aid consum-er, it might be something new and unfortunately they might not go back to their hearing specialist to get it checked. There are things that many of us can do. We can educate others about listening devices, t-coils, hearing loops, captioning in movie theatres, and whistling! These are just a few.
A lot of times I find that people are struggling with their hearing devic-es. Sometimes its because there were questions that were not asked or addressed during the hearing device purchase, adjustment or cochlear mapping session.
I hear questions about struggles with hearing at home, at school or in the work place. Many people just need support and “an ear” to listen, or someone to share their concerns with.
Our HLAA chapter has a H.O.P.E. session (Hearing Other People's Experiences) before our speaker presentation. It starts at 5:30 pm. If you have not already, I encourage you to attend and listen and/or share solu-tions with us. Sharing experiences, information, suggestions with others is what H.O.P.E. is all about. If you need help, come to our meeting and talk to us about what bothers you. I am sure we can give you helpful in-formation. After all, we are “All Ears”.
See you at the June meeting!
...Colleen Van Rooy, Chapter President
HLAA Convention Delegation
Christine Klessig, chapter secretary and official
chapter delegate and Chris Prust, member-at-large,
have been awarded stipends from the chapter
treasury to attend that national HLAA convention
in Washington D.C. June 23—26.
They will attend delegate’s meetings where
chapter leaders ask questions, exchange infor-
mation and share success stories.
The 2016 HLAA Convention will be held in
tandem with the International Federation of Hard
of Hearing People (IFHOH) Congress. The schedule
contains excellent speakers, outstanding work-
shops, hearing technology reviews and the largest
hearing assistive technology trade show in the
world.
We look forward to Christine and Chris shar-
ing what they learn at the convention with us.
Chapter Outreach...
One of the most frequent questions we
hear from people new to HLAA is “Why
didn’t I know about this group before?” followed by,
“How can we get the word out to more people?” It’s com-
plicated. We ask hearing healthcare professionals to
share our information with their patients. We circulate
our newsletter to everyone who requests it. We hang
posters with our meeting program information in many
places in the area. We depend a lot on people telling
others about HLAA.
Recently, the chapter received a grant from HLAA-WI
for an outreach project. The board voted to put a small
paid advertisement in Nature’s Pathways Magazine.
With the ad, comes the privilege of submitting an arti-
cle for publication. March, May and September are the
target months for the ad and article. Please let us know
if you’ve seen the them. NPM is a free publication that
can be picked up at a variety of locations in northeast-
ern WI.
The March issue featured a story about destigmatizing
hearing aids. The May issue’s article was on telecoils.
We have yet to determine the subject for September. We
are pleased to note that national HLAA has linked the
telecoil article “Time for a Hearing Aid? Don’t Forget
the Telecoils” on the home page at www.hearingloss.org
Since the March publication, our Facebook page has
had an increase in ‘likes’, and there have been several
phone calls. We hope to learn how many new people
attend our meetings because they saw the ad or article.
Julie Olson, our chapter newsletter editor has gra-
ciously agreed to write the articles for Nature’s Path-
ways Magazine. We appreciate her willingness to do
that.
We are grateful to HLAA-WI for the $500 grant re-
ceived for this project.
Terms a Person with Hearing Loss Should Know
DeciBel (dB)
The term dB (deciBel) and the dB scale are used world-wide for the measurement of sound levels. The deciBel scale is a logarithmic scale where a doubling of sound pressure corresponds to a 6 dB increase in level. Here are some examples of different sound intensities as expressed in dB(HL): 180 dB: Rocket at take-off 140 dB: Jet engine at take-off 120 dB: Rock band 110 dB: Loud thunder 90 dB: City traffic 80 dB: Loud radio 60 dB: Ordinary conversation 30 dB: Soft whisper 0 dB: Softest sound a person can hear Sounds louder than 80 dB can cause noise induced hearing loss. Duration of the sound is a factor. The louder the sound, the shorter the duration before hearing may be affected. Wise musicians wear hearing protection designed especially for music. People working in high dB environments should also wear hearing protection. Often, it’s a matter of choice. Once hearing loss starts it’s irreversible.
Frequency The frequency of a sound is the number of cycles of a sound wave in one second. The unit of measurement is hertz (Hz). The frequency of a sound increases as the number of cycles per second increase. Vibrations between 20 and 20,000 cycles per second are interpreted as sound by a normal hearing person. A high-pitched sound could be a piccolo flute or a bird singing. Low-pitched sounds could be thunder heard from far away or tones from a bass guitar. A person with noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) is more likely to hear low-pitched sounds better than high-pitched sounds. For example, male voices are easier for someone with NIHL to understand than children’s voices.
Disclaimer—HLAA does not endorse products or services. Mention of
such is intended to provide readers & those who attend meetings with
information on products or services that might be of interest, & is not a
recommendation or endorsement.
Please consider redistributing the HLAA Magazines you re-
ceive with national membership. They are full of infor-
mation. It’s another way to let the public know HLAA exists.
Drop them off at doctor’s offices, beauty salons, etc. wherever
magazines are available in waiting rooms. Thank you!
Remember to buy HLAA Bean Soup Mix.
Available at chapter meetings or
from Carol:
Great for Soup or Salad!
2016 Chapter Sponsors
[Platinum Level ($200 or More)
About Better Care Audiology – Stephanie Long AuD Anonymous Audiology & Hearing Aid Center of ENT Specialists of WI - Audiologists; Mark Conradt, Erin Krueger, Holly Rush-Clothier, Tricia Roh, Tammy Mischka, Katie Armatoski & Cathy Dreifuerst Audiology and Hearing Services – Michael Thelen AuD Ear Nose & Throat Surgical Associates - Kristin Borgen AuD, Beth Gabavics AuD & Nicole Maxam CCC-A Fox Valley Hearing Center, Inc. - Bria Anderson AuD, Melissa Dintelman AuD, & Candy McGinnis AuD Haviland Hearing Aids, Inc. Peter Zellmer AuD, CCC-A Kyle Martel AuD Rural Audiology Services, Inc. Cari J. Cramer AuD, Becky L. Franz MS, CCC-A Ray & Betty Smith Char & Bob Van Asten Gold Level ($100 - $199)
Anonymous, Joe & Barb Bach, Judy & Larry Benish, Jim Cuene, Betsy Foley, Kevin Gossins, Doug Grant MD, Hear-ing Clinics of Wisconsin Inc.; Robert Broeckert MS-CCC-A, Jo Kintopf-Crabb, Christine Klessig, Mike Landreman, Thomas & Linda O’Connor, Marge & Vern Parker, Howard & Charlene Porter, Julie Reisinger, Juliette Sterkens & Max Maxfield, Julianna Turoski (in memory of Victor Turo-ski), Walt & Phyllis Ziemke Seeing the Word - Margo Lucas, CRC, RPR, CRI Silver Level ($50 - $99)
Jim & Rhonda Bartelt Suzanne Brown,Dave & Nancy Gil-bertson, Liz Ginke, Charlie & Betsy Hansen, Elizabeth Keggi, Ione Muehlenbein (in memory of Paul Muehlen-bein), Chris Prust, Joyce Rudolph, Stevie Schmidt, Karen & Thomas Schuppe, Lyle & Phyllis Sconzert, Carol Smo-kovich, Barb & Russ Soderberg, Gene & “T” Van Asten, Mike & Lois Vande Loo, Jerry & Phyllis Van Handel, Jan & Diane Veenedaal, Earl & Shirley Younk, Paul & Harriet Zuiker Bronze Level ($25 - $49)
Affinity Medical Group Audiology; Debra Engebos AuD Carol Burns, Rich & Janet Erickson, Donald Kunde, Janice Liebscher, Fred Lilly, Raymond R. Morris, Alice Reimer-McKee, Mary Walter, Katie Weber (in memory of ‘Butts’ Weber), Dick & Mary Wilkenson, Anonymous X 2
We are grateful to these Sponsors for their gen-erosity and support of HLAA Fox Valley Chap-ter. Their support allows us to print & circulate this newsletter, to hold regular meetings, to pro-vide information & materials to those who at-tend our meetings & much more.
Our meetings are open to the public.
Tax deductible donations can be sent to: HLAA-FVC Treasurer, P.O. Box 25, Menasha WI 54952-0025. The chapter is a registered 501(c)3 non profit. NOTE: Substantial in-kind donations & services are provided by: Lorna Hamilton, Julie & John Olson, Gene & ‘T’ Van Asten, Colleen Van Rooy, & others.
May Chapter Program Summary
Many thanks to our May presenter,
speech/language pathologist Dione
Langley of Key Therapy in German-
town. Dione works primarily with chil-
dren (but also adults) who are learning
how to listen with cochlear implants,
but her talk applied to those with hear-
ing aids as well.
Aural rehabilitation, she said, in-
volves retraining the brain to cope
with hearing loss and with hearing technology. She gave
tips for managing conversations in person and over the
telephone, as well as hearing in various other settings.
She explained that you must be assertive and to teach
others how to help. Dione emphasized that you should
never pretend to understand a conversation. You can
modify situations to help yourself, such as picking the
best seating possible in a restaurant. If communication
breakdown happens, there are ways to cope, such as by
asking the other person to rephrase what they said in-
stead of just repeating it several times over.
Dione wrapped up her talk by sharing examples of
online resources, computer programs and apps you can
use to retrain your brain to hear speech accurately.
Many of these resources are free. There are also exercis-
es one can do with a partner.
Dione’s talk was hopeful and informative, and it was
greatly appreciated!
Written for HLAA-FV News by Elizabeth Keggi
Dione Langley
“A person who never makes mistakes
seldom makes anything else.”
...Guideposts Magazine
HLAA-Fox Valley Chapter
P.O. Box 25
Menasha WI 54952-0025
2016 HLAA-Fox Valley Chapter Board
President: Colleen Van Rooy: [email protected]
Treasurer: Jane Young: [email protected]
Secretary: Christine Klessig [email protected]
Programs & Cochlear Implant Group Chair: Rhonda
Clancey: [email protected]
Newsletter Editor: Julie Olson: [email protected]
H.O.P.E. Chair: Nancy Gilbertson
Member at Large: Jo Kintopf-Crabb
Support Crew: Bob Opsteen - Room Set-up, ‘’T” &
Gene Van Asten - Outreach & Fund Raising, Lorna Ham-
ilton - Newsletter preparation & phone support 920-725-
2579. Chapter e-mail: [email protected]
2016 Chapter Meeting Calendar
June 13—Disaster Preparedness for HH People.
July 11—Picnic Social + Musical Sounds We CAN Hear
August—No Regular Chapter Meeting in August.
August 8—The HOPE group will meet at 5:30.
September 12—Hearing Aids & Assistive Technology
October 10—Captioned Telephones
November 14—Coping Strategies in Difficult Settings
December 12—Annual Holiday Party
The monthly newsletter serves as our meeting notice.
Please sign up to receive it. Lorna: 725-2579 or
[email protected] It can come via mail or e-mail.
Specific program information about topics, timelines, and
presenters will appear in each monthly newsletters.
Chapter meetings are preceded by HOPE support group.
NOTE: HOPE discussion will be held each month, including
months of chapter socials and also in months when the
chapter doesn’t meet. (August, January & February)
More Dates to Remember
Cochlear Implant Group Meets Quarterly
July 18, October 17, January 17 (2017)
November 4—Annual Meeting of HLAA-WI
November 5—State Hearing Loop Expo (Milwaukee)
Board Help Needed! Perpetuating this chapter is a
goal of the chapter board. If you are willing and able to be
on a committee or serve as a board member, please let one
of the above people know. Thankyou!
HOPE Notes….
There Is More To Helping Hearing Loss Than Just Getting
A Hearing Aid
A few facts about hearing aids:
Hearing aids do not restore normal hearing.
Hearing aids amplify sound, giving back about half of the hearing you have lost.
Hearing aids are most useful within distances of four to six feet.
Hearing aid microphones pick up all sounds that are happening around us. With hearing loss, we loose our ability to separate speech sounds from background noise.
Do you ask yourself or think to yourself:
“I don't know anything about hearing aids. What happens when I get a hearing aid?”
“How will I know how best to use a hearing aid?”
“My hearing aid makes an embarrassing high-pitched noise.”
“I hear like I'm in a tunnel.”
“With my hearing aids, I hear all what's going on around me but can't understand the person talking in front of me.”
“My hearing aid is only five years old. Why can't I hear like when it was new?”
“What is Hearing Assistive Technology?”
Living with hearing loss can be overwhelming. At H.O.P.E., we get together to ask questions, share experi-ences & share some laughs. We support each other. We learn from each other. We never know what we will learn when we get together. The best part is sitting among others who understand there is more to living well with hearing loss than just getting a hearing aid.
You are not alone. Please join us.
June 13th at 5:30 p.m.
Nancy Gilbertson, HOPE Facilitator
H.O.P.E. = Hearing Other People’s Experiences
More information on the Loop
Expo coming soon. Hotel room
block, registration, timeline,etc.
HLAA Fox Valley Regional Chapter is an affiliate of the national
Hearing Loss Association of America, Inc. This chapter does not collect
dues.
Dues to the national HLAA organization are $35/year, and can be
paid to HLAA National Office, Attention: Membership, 7910 Woodmont
Ave., Ste. 1200, Bethesda MD 20814. You can also join national HLAA
online at: www.hearingloss.org.
HLAA at all levels is a 501c3 non-profit organization.
