About Us

HLAA Boston is an all-volunteer nonprofit organization dedicated to fulfilling the HLAA mission in Boston and beyond.

We strive to empower those with hearing loss by providing information, support, community, and advocacy.

We want people with hearing loss — like us — to know that they don’t have to face hearing loss alone. We can help!

You can also read more about what HLAA National has been doing in this 2023 Annual Report.

Our Team

President: Kerry Sullivan

Question; How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer: Member of HLAA: 8 years. Boston Chapter: 1 year
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Oticon MiniRITE T/ More (rechargeable) and Oticon Opn S (battery charged, backup pair)
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: 35+ years
Q: Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: Caption apps on my phone/iPad/Computer (Innocaption for phone calls, Otter for all else)
Q: What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A: How hard those of us with hearing loss work to just be able to understand and respond.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Hearing: Riding in a car or airplane. Communicating: Not getting ahead of the conversation
Q: What is your superpower?
A: Superfocus/ concentration.

Vice-President: Sue Schy

Question: How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer: Since around 2010/2011
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Advanced Bionics Marvel cochlear implant processors (internal devices different)
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: Hearing aid(s) since 1963- age 7- and left cochlear implant 2014, right cochlear implant 2023
Q: Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: Used to be a speaker phone after my first implant, and now with Marvel- direct streaming to the phone. If the Bluetooth connection is clear, I rarely miss a word during a phone conversation. If you don’t want to consider this assistive because it is built into the processors, then I’d have to say the Phonak remote, which allows me to change programs directly for the phone at work without touching my processors. I can do this directly through an app on my phone but I keep my Bluetooth off during the workday to prioritize my Bluetooth stethoscope.
Q; What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A: Hearing aids don’t “fix” your hearing like glasses do your vision. auditory rehabilitation (practice and learning strategies) are needed.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Since I’ve had hearing aids since I was a child and have never known anything else, and being a realist, accepting people’s varying degrees of denial in coming to grips with their own loss. I can understand it intellectually, but often find it comical (and frustrating) when my hearing often gets blamed for someone else not hearing something.
Q: What is your superpower?
A: My ability to pick up on others non-verbal cues (speech reading, included). This has at times also been a curse.

Treasurer: Roberta Wiggins

Question: How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer: Since the walk last November [2023]. I attended it to meet HLAA people and was invited to join the book group.
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Phonak Audeo Paradise 50
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: 3.5 years. I lost 70% hearing suddenly 5 years ago [2019] but it took 1.5 years to get hearing aids. I was told they wouldn’t help me much so I considered a cochlear, and was then told a cochlear wasn’t good for my reverse slope hearing loss. (I. hear higher frequencies if there’s no ambient noise, better than low frequencies). The hearing aids provide only limited help.
Q: Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: Roger remote mic is some help in one on one conversations
Q; What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A: The limitations of hearing aids.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Being with more than one person, especially outdoors. (Restaurants, parties are impossible). Hearing music as opposed to just noise. It’s wonderful when I hear a very high musical instrument, flute or violin.
Q: What is your superpower?
A: My relationship with my husband

Secretary: Liz Olson

Question: How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer: since (before) there was a Boston chapter- SHHH in ?? 2000
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Bilateral Med-El Cochlear Implants
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: hearing aids since late 80s (analog to digital), 9/2015 implant right ear, and 2/2022 left ear implant
Q: Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: InnoCaption phone app or lipreading
Q: What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A: Hearing loss has a much wider impact on life than people think; not hearing can lead to complications in learning, in making relationships, in following culture (radio, tv, music), and these losses can lead to isolation and depression.
Q; What has been your biggest challenge?
A: It took me almost 20 years to begin to know what I needed for myself, in order to self-advocate to the people who wanted to help me.
Q: What is your superpower?
A: Perseverance and creativity

Historian: Carol Agate

Question: How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer:1990s, starting in Santa Monica and then Los Angeles; Boston since 2009
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Phonak Lumity 90
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: Probably since 1996, when hearing aids became digital. Before that I had a cookie bite audiogram so I could not use analog aids.
Q:Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: Roger mics
Q: What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A:That they don’t work the way glasses do.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Understanding lengthy explanations.
Q: What is your superpower?
A: Being undisturbed by noisy environments where I have no need to hear and turn off the hearing aids while everyone else is complaining about the noise.

Social Media: Jonathan Ozek

Question: How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer: Since October 2023
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Phonak Naida P90-UP
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: I’ve been a Phonak member since February 2024 but have been wearing hearing aids since I was born.
Q: Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: When it comes to accessibility and communication, I do email, texting, or closed captions.
Q: What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A: One important aspect of hearing loss that I believe should be more widely understood is that diversity within the deaf and hard of hearing community. Two things that stand out are accommodation matters and hearing loss isn’t always age-related.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Communication is the biggest challenge. Especially when I have invisible disability.
Q: What is your superpower?
A: Turning my hearing aid off

Technology: Brad McKenna

Question: How long have you been involved with HLAA?
Answer: Since January 2024
Q: What make/model of hearing aid or CI do you have?
A: Oticon Real 3
Q: How long have you been using an aid or implant?
A: I’ve had this set for a little over a year but I’ve been wearing hearing aids for twenty years.
Q: Besides your aid/implant, what’s your favorite piece of assistive technology?
A: Email, with texting a close second. Phone calls have always given me problems. It’s much easier for me to communicate through the written word.
Q: What’s one thing about having hearing loss that you wish was more widely known?
A: Hearing aids don’t work like glasses. They amplify sounds but don’t clarify them.
Q: What has been your biggest challenge?
A: Getting people to believe I have hearing problems. I’m 6’2″, bearded, and have at least one visible tattoo at all times. I don’t look like someone who is hard of hearing (whatever that’s supposed to look like).
Q: What is your superpower?
A: My peripheral vision. I can catch even the slightest movement off to my sides.