08-23-2006

The Asociacion Mexicana para la Audicion, AC, Amaoir, Mexico City, announces that more than 30 children in Mexico with profound hearing loss will be provided the ability to understand spoken language thanks to a $1.5 million donation from the Western Union Foundation and Grupo Elektra.

Amaoir received the donation through Fundacion Azteca and its Movimiento Azteca fundraising campaign called Rompiendo el Silencio, Breaking the Silence. The donation will help pay for more than 30 Cochlear implant surgeries for low-income Mexican children.

“Profound hearing loss is an educational issue for children, especially in Mexico where deafness as a culture practically does not exist and access to sign language is limited,” says Dr Gonzalo Corvera, president and founder of Amaoir. “The sooner a child is fitted with a Cochlear implant and started in therapy, the better they are able to maximize what hearing they have to learn speech and language skills.”

Amaoir has arranged for free hospital services and pro-bono doctor care for all of the operations. The devices are being purchased from Cochlear Americas at a generous discount.

[SOURCE: Business Wire, August 14, 2006]