Masonic Charity Foundation grant helps School for the Deaf’s Senior Citizens’ Hearing Aid Program

EDMOND, Okla. – The Masonic Charity Foundation of Oklahoma awarded a generous grant to purchase hearing aids for 180 seniors through the statewide Senior Citizens Hearing Aid Program operated by the Oklahoma School for the Deaf.

Including the recent grant, the Masonic Charity Foundation has donated a total of  $893,000 which cleared waiting lists and helped lower-income seniors get hearing aids through the OSD program. 

Masonic Grand Master John Carter and Masonic Foundation President Neil Stitt presented a $125,000 check to OSD Superintendent Dr. Heather Laine and OSD Equipment Distribution Program coordinator Renate Neal at a luncheon on March 19 at the Hilton Garden Inn and Edmond Conference Center.

“On behalf of the Masonic Fraternity of Oklahoma, we are proud to help improve the lives of Oklahoma’s seniors,” said John Logan, executive director. “We appreciate the Senior Hearing Aid Program and the efforts of the Department of Rehabilitation Services and the Oklahoma School for the Deaf, who make it happen.”

OSD’s hearing aid program is funded by a small fee on telephone service for those who have conventional metal wire or optical fiber telephone connections, known as land lines.

Funding for the program has declined in recent years because many people have switched to mobile cellular phones, which are not currently subject to the telephone service fee in Oklahoma.

“The Senior Citizens Hearing Aid Program has helped with improving the quality of life by giving seniors access to communication, the security of safety and confidence, which are all vital to the health of a senior,” Neal said

To qualify for the Senior Citizens Hearing Aid Program, Oklahoma residents must be 60 years of age, with limited income and a 35-decibel hearing loss in their better ear.

The program pays for an audiology examination, ear mold impression, hearing aid fitting and one non-digital hearing aid per person due to limited funding and the need to serve as many seniors as possible.

“The support of Masonic Charity Foundation means the world for our senior citizens with hearing loss,” OSD Superintendent Dr. Heather Laine said. “Without it, we could not be able to have the impact we do for our senior citizens’ quality of life. Thank you to the Masons for helping us making a positive impact.”

OSD is a division of the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services.

For more information about the program, email mcole@okdrs.gov, phone 580-622-4909 or visit http://www.osd.k12.ok.us/edp/senior_hearing_aid.pdf.

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