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A Story of Compassion and Hearing
Sometimes in life, you may be down; but if your faith is strong, you’ll never be out.
Deborah James of Chesapeake and her husband just became first-time grandparents. Their granddaughter, unfortunately, was born prematurely with complications and has been at CHKD for the last month.
Throughout the pregnancy, the proud grandmother couldn’t wait to hear the cries of her first grandbaby, although Mrs. James suffers from a congenital hearing loss. (Her own father, brother, grandmother and cousins all have suffered with hearing-loss problems over the years.)
Debbie James first visited the Beltone office in December of 2002, seeking first-time, professional help for her hearing loss and maybe some empathy for her problem. This is when she first met Bari Grohler, President of Southside Beltone. Beltone assessed Debbie’s hearing loss and demonstrated aids that considerably improved her hearing levels. The cost for those aids at that time was $400. Though they greatly improved her hearing, the cost was unfortunately out of Debbie’s reach.
Knowing the level of Debbie’s hearing loss, Bari Grohler evaluated the problem and absolutely refused to let this customer leave without the hearing aids that would dramatically improve the quality of her life: Ms. Grohler arranged for Debbie James to have in-house financing, something not usually offered. With every payment she made, Debbie always included a note saying how thankful she was to have the hearing aids and what a difference they made in her life. Debbie has always kept her Christian faith strong, knowing in her heart that things will always work out for the best and always believing in the kindness of others
During the past few months, Debbie began to have troubling problems with her 7-year-old hearing aids. She knew she would be unable to afford new ones, because her husband had recently had his hours cut at work. Additionally, Debbie and her husband recently have also been helping their son financially, after he lost his job. So, Debbie brought her hearing aids back to Beltone with the hope of repairing the problem aid that had cracked and would no longer work. She hoped the repair would not be too costly!
When Debbie arrived at Beltone, the story was quietly conveyed by one of Beltone’s  employees to Ms. Grohler, who certainly remembered Debbie James’ initial visit to her, years earlier. While Debbie was waiting for the repair, the Licensed Hearing Instrument Specialist, Jenifer Stoltz, temporarily loaned Debbie two digital hearing aids to wear while she waited for the repair. A short time later, Jenifer found Debbie in the corner of the waiting area, weeping! When asked what was wrong, Debbie replied, “I just can’t believe how well I can hear with these new aids. It’s like a gift from God!”
When the repair was complete, Jenifer asked Debbie if she would like to keep the new aids for “a week’s trial” to see if she might like to purchase them. Alas, Debbie gave a saddened reply, saying, “I just can’t! It wouldn’t be fair. I know with times like they are, I would never be able to afford these. It just isn’t meant to be, right now.” Removing the new aids from her ears, Debbie handed them back to the technician, placed her old, repaired aid in place, hugged several people in the office and departed.
Later that same day, in the weekly staff meeting, the full story of what had occurred with Debbie James was shared. Simultaneously, Beth Hall (VP of Operations) and Bari Grohler (President) looked at each other…nodding. It was at that moment, Bari and Beth decided to donate the gift of hearing to Debbie.
Bari said later, “Debbie truly is a wonderful woman, and she deserves the gift of hearing!
She touched our hearts! We can and will make this happen for her! She needs to hear her new little granddaughter laugh and cry!”
The next morning, Bari Grohler was choked up as she phoned Debbie to give her the thrilling news: She would be the recipient of a brand new set of hearing aids! These were not just ANY hearing aids… nor is that ALL they donated! To Debbie’s utter amazement, she was gifted a Custom Set of Beltone “Changes” (open-fit hearing aids) that sell for $5000.00! After Debbie’s initial shock, Bari informed her that she will be receiving unlimited, lifetime care of the aids, such as cleanings and her annual tests! And finally, Bari will even include one full year of free batteries – a value of approximately $180.00. Could this be real?
Absolutely stunned, Debbie burst into tears on the phone, repeating over and over again, “God Bless you! God Bless you!”
Says Bari, “Mrs. James tells me that she loves the Beltone products and feels we have the best in the business. Of course, we completely agree!” Bari goes on to say, “Everyone at Southside Beltone is a competent and caring professional who goes above and beyond to ensure that each of its patients is taken care of in every way possible. This was a win-win, serendipitous and memorable event for everyone involved!
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