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H2H in Y2K Witnessing the dawn of a new millennium is cause for celebration. What better way to celebrate than by helping our fellow man? - how about helping hearing impaired infants to develop their full potential. That is how the Masons of Ontario, through their Masonic Foundation, will celebrate the start of the new millennium. In his annual report to the Masonic Foundation of Ontario, out-going President H. Neil Britton announced the launching of "HELP-2-HEAR', a $2 million Millennium Project to identify hearing problems in neonates and infants. The project will help them combat the impairment and allow them to take their rightful place beside their hearing peers. The challenge will be to provide hearing impaired children with the earliest opportunity to develop their communication abilities, have normal educational and career prospects and, most importantly, improve their quality of life. This new project is a natural extension of the successful Project H.E.L.P. (Hearing for Every Living Person) undertaken some 20 years ago to support research into hearing disorders. Research supported by Project H.E.L.P. has led to successful cochlear implants in children, allowing clinically deaf youngsters to hear those sounds we take for granted and to communicate orally. This research has also led to the development of a device to measure how the inner ear is functioning. Dr. Alan Goldbloom, Vice-President of Academic and Clinical Development, Hospital for Sick Children, and Guest Speaker at the Grand Master's Banquet, praised the Masons of Ontario for their support of hearing research, totaling over $1 million to date, and commended them for their vision in undertaking this new project that will put into practice the results of that research to enable early detection of hearing problems in newborn babies. Dr. Goldbloom noted that the sooner detection of a problem occurs, the better will be the results of habilitation. "Otoacoustic emissions" are big words for tiny ears, but the ability to now measure sounds emanating from the inner car in response to a test sound can determine whether that tiny car is functioning normally. More sophisticated testing will follow when negative results are encountered to determine the degree of the hearing problem and to guide parents to an appropriate treatment strategy. The Capital Fund created by the Millennium Project will provide the resources to obtain the necessary equipment and training to implement a Neonatal Hearing Screening system in cities, towns and villages all across Ontario. In his concluding remarks at 144h Annual Communication of Grand Lodge, M.W. Bro. Robert J. McKibbon, Grand Master, asked "how can you explain the joy of music to a child locked in a world of silence?" He commended the Masonic Foundation and Grand Lodge for providing the Masons of Ontario with a project that will lift the yoke of deafness from hearing impaired children, benefit our communities and bring a sense of pride of accomplishment to the membership. Ronald K. Campbell, President of the Masonic Foundation of Ontario, commented that "HELP-2-HEAR" will assist in providing hearing impaired children with their natural right to communicate with a voice that will enable them to become the leaders of tomorrow. He stated "It is an ambitious project, but if we do not set our sights high, how can we, as Masons, hold our heads up and feel the pride of doing the good act, not for ourselves, but for the cause of good". Back to
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