Thursday morning, David Cubrich, 73 of Bellevue, heard his wife Terri loud and clear for the first time in almost a decade.
David had been suffering from hearing loss and being on a fixed income, the Cubrich family couldn't afford hearing aids.
Terri recently wrote a letter to the Beltone Hearing Care Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, to see if they would donate hearing aids to her husband.
Terri wrote in part: “As a care giver for my husband David, I would love for him (us) to be considered for hearing aids through your foundation. He is 73 and was a carpenter for 35 years. In those days, they didn’t realize how important ear plugs were. We have been married for nearly 18 years. I would say his hearing has been getting worse for years but he was diagnosed with frontal dementia in 2011.”
“Since then, I have noticed his hearing getting so bad he doesn’t hear whether he is talking on the phone to one person or a group. He is withdrawn from most conversations when there is more than one person involved. It is extremely frustrating to him, our five boys and eight grandchildren. I literally have to bite my tongue many times because it is so upsetting to have to repeat things at times, sometimes as many as four times. Dementia has made dealing with his hearing loss nearly impossible. He is extremely depressed at times and can’t have conversations with the loves of his life- his grandkids.”
Watch the video above to see David's story. If you would like to help, we also spoke with a 13 year old Omaha girl, Rachel Radloff, who is raising money with an ice skating event Friday to raise money for HIKE, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that provides hearing aids to kids.
