Annually, since 2014, our team of faculty and students from the School of Communication Science and Disorders has traveled to Panajachel, Guatemala, where we have served alongside our humanitarian outreach partner, Porch de Salomon, to provide free hearing and hearing aid clinics. In the Western Highlands and the region of Solola, poverty hinders even routine evaluation and treatment of hearing loss, leading to a severe need for audiology services in this area. Over the past ten years, with the support of our Student Academy of Audiology and generous donors from both near and far, we have provided 1200 hearing evaluations, fit over 800 hearing aids, provided follow-up hearing services to over 300 individuals, and have referred over 200 people for medical care.

On January 31, 2026, I, along with a team of students from FSU will depart for Panajachel, Guatemala, where we will serve in the central highlands for seven days. We will be serving through an outreach organization, Porch de Salomon (porchdesalomon.org). Porch de Salomon has hosted short-term mission teams in Guatemala since 2006, with over 16 teams per year. Due to extreme poverty, most mission teams' primary focus has been building small concrete block homes for impoverished indigenous families. Their teams have also established free village medical and dental clinics in response to the scarcity of healthcare in this area. To date, ours is their only team that provides hearing services.

Sustainability is and has always been the goal with a continued partnership between Florida State University Speech and Hearing Clinic and Porch de Salomon. Poverty prevents even routine evaluation and treatment of hearing loss in the Western Highlands. Audiology services are severely needed in this area, and we hope to provide both training and services. While children are the focus of many audiology mission trips, our organization will provide services to both children and adults. For the indigenous people, we hope to give the gift of sound.

The trip is being funded entirely through donations and those going on the mission trip. Everything that will be used on the trip must be taken with us. This includes all the medical supplies, audiology supplies, audiology equipment, hearing aid batteries, etc. Every penny collected will be used to directly benefit the people of Guatemala. Any unused supplies will be left with Porch de Salomon.

We are incredibly thankful for those who have supported this effort in the past and continue to help bring the gift of hearing to those who would otherwise go unserved. Please know, I understand the value of your donation…and am so appreciative of your continued support.