Hearing Aid for Dawn Rogers

Dawn Rogers, one of my dearest and closest friends, was born with Sensorineural deafness which is also often called nerve deafness. When I met Dawn in the 1980's she was already deaf in one ear.  Over the years, the hearing in her other ear, her "good ear" as we called it, has been deteriorating. At one point many years ago,  she tried to use a hearing aid but the technology was much poorer then and she could not tolerate all the extra noise it was picking up. Last year, at my urging, she began seeing specialists here in the Nashville area. They all agreed that she needs to get a hearing aid as soon as possible and assured her that the technology is greatly improved and she will have a much better experience. The "good ear" is changing so fast that they feel it is critical to get the hearing aid ASAP.  The doctors also told her that getting the hearing aid as soon as possible will also help stimulate the ear for the future so that she can receive a cochlear implant at some point but felt the hearing aid should be the first step. Her dead ear does not qualify because some nerve activity has to be there while the other side needs to be stimulated to keep it from getting worse. Also, the doctors have told her that  the same area of this part of the brain also is involved with dementia and with advanced hearing loss it could lead to early dementia so you can see the urgency for raising these funds. 

Dawn is a single woman who works harder than anyone I know. She often was working 70 hours a week at two different jobs before COVID hit and she also has a small catering business she does on the side. However, being a single woman and having had many unexpected expenses over the years have made it impossible for her to save. Her insurance will not pay for the hearing aid.  Now, she is having to turn down some recent good job offers because the hearing in the good ear has gotten so much worse and while Dawn has developed good lip reading skills over the years, with everyone wearing masks now, it has created a new challenge for her. 

At this time, the hearing aid is waiting for her. All she needs is the money to pay for it. Anything you can give will be so appreciated! Every little bit can add up to reach our goal. The funds will cover the cost of the hearing aid which is 4500.00 and all of her out of pocket expenses for the several doctor visits she will need getting fitted, showing her how to adjust it and for follow-ups.

Finally, a little background on my relationship with Dawn. In the 1980's I was touring the country with my own band. We often played in Ocala, FL where Dawn and her family lived. She loved country music and so did her parents so along with  a group of friends they had, they would always come out and support us at our performances. On Sunday, which was our day off, Dawn's parents would have myself and the whole band over to their home with many friends for good home-cooked food and we would play volleyball all day. They took care of us like we were family and being so far from home out on the road all the time, it was a real gift. Dawn then moved to Nashville in the 1990's and she and I worked in an office job together, she lived at my house for awhile and we helped each other through some tough times. She is like family and anything you can do to help her, I will be grateful for. 

Thank you,
Kathy Sacra-Anderson