I am trying to raise some money to help fund an FM system for my son Caleb who has a hearing loss. We have a number of sponsored events taking place throughout the year and hope to reach our target. Caleb contracted meningitis as a baby and as a result has a moderate hearing loss. He has been wearing hearing aids in both ears since he was three months old however, the hearing aids do not replace his loss. They do improve the clarity of sound when he is close to the speaker and in quiet environments, therefore understanding speech in noisy environments is very challenging for him. Background noise, distance from the person who is speaking, and echoes are all obstacles that significantly reduce his access to crucial speech information. Most people do not notice the impact his impairment has on him, he has developed his own coping strategies and like most children with a hearing loss will not tell people when he can not hear.

There is a new system of FM technology and it is the most effective way to improve speech understanding in difficult listening situations. The FM system would work alongside his hearing aids by adding a special remote microphone that is placed much closer to the person that is speaking. This then transmits the speech signal directly into the ear and therefore limits the influence from other noises, distance and echoes.

If we raise the money to buy the equipment, he will be able to use it and benefit from it all the time, which would be amazing.
Caleb's attitude towards his hearing aids is amazing and I am so proud of him. the FM equipment would help him massively, and as his parent all I want is for him to have the best access to sounds in all environments.

Caleb is very lucky to have such a supportive family and network of friends who are fundraising for the FM system. A number of sponsored events are taking place and we would appreciate any amount so so much.

Thank you for taking the time to read.
Alisha Elliott (Caleb’s mum)