LUISSE RUTAO
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO- Starkey Hearing Foundation and the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in partnership with the Provincial Government through its Provincial Health Office (PHO) distributed P10 million worth of hearing aids to more than 500 hearing-impaired Kapampangans yesterday.
The hearing mission dubbed as “Community-Based Hearing Health Care Program” provided aid to Kapampangan’s with hearing disabilities.
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Marcelo Jaochico said that the partnership with Starkey Hearing Foundation is Governor Dennis “Delta” Pineda initiative of attending to the basic health services that people need.
“This partnership is our Governors way of bringing the health programs of the government closer to the people in order to achieve a better and healthier community,” Jaochico said.
Former Sta. Rita Mayor Yolanda Pineda, first lady of Pampanga witnessed the distribution of hearing aids together with Board members Mylyn Pineda Cayabyab, Anthony Joseph Torres, Fritzie David-Dizon, Lubao Mayor Esmie Pineda, Sta. Rita Mayor Ferdinand “Dagi” Salila, Starkey Foundation Representative Dr. Salve Olalia, Provincial Health Office (PHO) led by Dr. Jaochico, Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) head Elizabeth Baybayan, and Provincial Disaster and Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) head Angie Blanco.
Board Cayabyab, committee chairperson on health, meanwhile said that the Provincial Government will continue producing programs that will benefit the people.
“We will continue the services which Nanay and Delta have started. We will also find time to look into the areas that needs to be prioritized and improved,” Cayabyab said.
She also thanked Starkey foundation for always choosing Pampanga as their beneficiary.
“We are very much lucky that Starkey Foundation always choose Pampanga. A lot of our Cabalens indeed benefited from this Project,” Pineda said.
This is not the first time that Starkey Hearing Foundation gave help to Pampanga. In fact, in 2011 and 2018 the foundation already went here to bring their philanthropic efforts to hearing-impaired Kapampangans.
According to Kevin Ramos, Asia Pacific International Development director of Starkey Hearing Foundation, their mission is to give people the ability to connect with other people using the hearing aids and resources that they give for free.
“We use our hearing aids as a vehicle to show love and care. We are always willing to help everybody and anybody who needs it. We are a vehicle of caring to inflict love and care throughout the word, Ramos said.
Starkey Hearing Foundation is a US-based non-profit foundation which extends help all over the world by giving hearing aids for free. It is also the largest hearing foundation in the world.
To date, it has reached more than one million beneficiaries to more than 100 countries with its vision “So the World May Hear.”
