Bolton hearing clinic gifts hearing aids to Ukrainian refugee

Serhii's hearing loss was made worse by Russian bombing in Kyiv

By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A refugee from Ukraine has been given a helping hand by a Caledon hearing clinic.

Serhii, who's being identified by his first name only because of safety concerns for family in Ukraine, arrived in Canada six months ago. He was joining the rest of his immediate family, from whom he'd been separated from for almost nine months.

Serhii first learned of his hearing loss when he was younger and tried to join the army at the age of 18. He was told he had the hearing of a 60-year-old and that he wouldn't be able to join. His hearing loss became worse in recent years when Russia began its war on Ukraine.

Serhii and his family used to live in Kyiv, a focal point for Russian attacks as it's Ukraine's capital and most populous city. 

“The first time I was near a bomb when it went off, I was at work,” said Serhii. “Because we lived in the part of the city where the President is, when the Russians started the war, they attacked the area where the President lives.”

Serhii said he and his family put mattresses over windows to protect themselves from the bombings. Serhii's daughter, Anna, said they'd spend 16 hours a day in the subway tunnels to get away from the Russian bombs.

“There were more than 400 people and only two toilets. We had to bring water to drink and slept on cold floors,” said Anna. “Many people got sick.”

Now safe in Canada, Serhii's hearing loss was slowing down his ability to learn English and join the Canadian workforce. 

Shelley Hassard, Serhii's sponsor, nominated him for Hear Well Be Well's (HWBW) Gift of Hearing program.

HWBW has a hearing clinic in Bolton, as well as others across Ontario which are all family-run. Hassard said in her nomination that she wanted to send Serhii to English as a Second Language (ESL) classes but his hearing loss would have made it extremely hard to complete them. 

Serhii was selected by HWBW to receive free hearing aids from the Bolton clinic. Anna acted as his translator during tests and fittings for the devices. Anna studied English at school in Ukraine and had been practicing the language for many months before Serhii arrived in Canada. 

Serhii said before getting his new hearing aids, words sounded like they were coming from underwater. In addition to learning English, he's also looking forward to hearing music properly again as he used to be a musician. 

HWBW runs its gift of hearing program annually at its locations across Ontario.

Wendy Moore, Marketing Manager for the company, explained that in 2023 hearing aid manufacturer Beltone provided the free hearing aids and HWBW provided all tests and service for them free of charge. The program has been running since 2014 has helped over 100 people get hearing support.

Serhii said before he and his family came to Canada, they heard about Canadians' kindness. 

“Now we're here, we're experiencing it,” said Serhii. “...It's a beautiful country, it's perfect.”