The Friends of the Hearing Center at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh brings together parents, professionals, and volunteers to support long-term independence for infants, children, and teens who have hearing loss.

Donations give patients and families resources, guidance, and support that are not covered by insurance. Our programs help them connect, thrive, and develop self-advocacy.

Become a Friend of the Hearing Center.

Sponsor a program, support a child, and create lasting change.

Our programs include:

1. Hearing Center Care Closet: Enhances visits for children and families by providing comforting, engaging resources like books, retention solutions, decorative device stickers, and educational materials. Aims to make clinic visits more positive, informative, and empowering for every family we serve.

2. Patient and Family Advocacy: Offers families guidance and resources for navigating a new diagnosis, milestone transitions, and educational needs. One-on-one consultations, education, and connections to trusted resources help ensure each family has the tools and confidence to advocate for their child’s success.

3. Language Therapy Kits: Specially curated kits help build early communication skills by giving families hands-on tools to support their infants and toddlers at home.

4. Milestones Program: Marks important steps throughout patient’s journeys with special gifts that support communication, safety, and growing independence at each stage.

5. Book Fair: The annual free Book Fair provides children books featuring characters who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deafblind and aims to support advocacy and advance literacy skills.