John S. Anderson Jr. John S. Anderson Jr, an advocate for children with hearing impairment and education, passed away on October 8 in the company of wonderful friends. Anderson was born Sept. 7, 1945 in Charleston, SC, and he served in the US Navy during the Vietnam War. In 1989, he joined Audio Enhancement and became a vital part in growing the company. Anderson enjoyed traveling and making friends nationwide, and was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-day Saints. He strove to be known as the nicest man anyone could have known. The deaf community embraced him for his unconditional love. Anderson was widely relied upon as an expert in classroom amplification and wireless infrared listening system by hearing care professionals across the country. He is survived by his wife, Claudia, of Bluffdale, Utah; children, Andy Anderson, and Claudia Anderson, Jeffrey (Rachelle) Anderson, Jennifer (Rulon) Crum, Jeremy (Stacy) Anderson, and Justin (Andrea) Anderson, and 16 grandchildren.

Sonus
Bryan Grant

Sonus, Plymouth, Minn, a division of Amplifon USA, Plymouth, Minn, announced additions and changes with the Sonus Network Staff. Bryan Grant, inside account executive for Florida and the Southeast since October 2001, has been promoted to HearPO manager. In his new position, Grant will be responsible for the day-to-day management of HearPO, including sales and customer service. Grant started his career with the Sonus Network in 1999 in the accounting department. He was soon promoted to account manager in June of 2000, prior to joining the Sonus Network in 2001.

Lorilee Olson

Replacing Grant is Lorilee Olson, who joins the Sonus Network as an inside account executive for Florida and the Southeast. Olson comes from GN Resound where she served as an inside account executive for 6 years. She has 15 years of experience in the hearing industry and has also worked for Micro-Tech, Danavox Inc and Qualitone.

Raul Pacheco

Raul Pacheco, inside account executive for the Northeast and MidAtlantic regions, has been promoted to regional network manager for the West Central region. Pacheco has been with the Sonus Network since September 2001.

Kay Olson

Kay Olson replaces Raul Pacheco as the inside account executive for the MidAtlantic and Northeast territories. Her 4 years of experience as an inside account executive for a major hearing aid manufacturer, plus other work experience in sales and customer service, make her a valuable addition to the inside team.

Audiology Foundation of America
The Audiology Foundation of America (AFA) awarded eight School-Based Practitioner Scholarships of $1000 to hearing practitioners who are pursuing an AuD degree. The recipients are: Shirley Albright, Sioux Falls, SD, Rebecca Anderson, Lake Worth, FL, Sara Brown, Mesa, AZ, Linda Charlebois, Indianapolis, IN, Alisha Church, Glendale, AZ, William Helms, Ames, IA, Leigh Lamb, Philadelphia, TN, and Susan Russell, Dublin, OH.

AFA’s School-Based Practitioner Scholarship, which are made possible, in part, by a $3000 grant from Phonak LLC, Warrenville, Ill, was developed to encourage new applications to distance-learning AuD programs by school-based audiology practitioners.

In another effort to promote AuD distance education, the Ear Service Corp® provided a $1000 scholarship. Practitioners, who were not currently enrolled in AuD programs, submitted their names to the AFA office. During a drawing, Pamela Montogomery-Kenison of Jupiter, Fla, was selected as the winner.

GN Otometrics
Soren Holst has been appointed president of GN Otometrics A/S, Denmark, as of October 2004.

With a master’s degree in economics from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and an master’s in business administration from Washington State University, Holst has worked in the hearing health care industry from 1988 to 2000. During this period, he headed development teams, as well as rolled out new manufacturing technologies and products.

Holst also served as president of Oticon Inc (USA) from 1997-2000. Since 2000, Holst has been a partner and CEO of PreVenture A/S, a Danish venture capital firm.

Sprint
Sprint Relay agent George Littlejohn received the 2004 Gold Employee of the Year Award of Honor by the National Business and Disability Council (NBDC). Littlejohn, who is completely blind, works out of the Sprint Relay call center in Independence, Mo. The Employee of the Year award is presented to an employee with a disability who is engaged in competitive employment, acts as a positive influence for other staff members, and exemplifies the NBDC's philosophy that a qualified person with a disability can perform productively if given an equal opportunity to compete.

Littlejohn enriched the culture at the Independence call center by teaching his coworkers about blind-culture and the appropriate ways to work and interact with a blind person.