Empowerline volunteer Jeff Bonnell loves educating older adults about hearing loss. He has been doing this through Empowerline over the past five years.
Older adults have no understanding of hearing loss until they experience it themselves, says Bonnell, who was born deaf in one ear. And this usually happens when they can’t hear their grandchildren.
“They don’t know it’s a normal part of aging,” he explains. “People are fascinated when I talk about it.”
Bonnell says it’s hard to find volunteers who want to educate others about hearing loss. In the past year, Bonnell has been doing his presentations via Zoom, but he’s looking forward to gathering again in person.
“Every presentation I did was different because the questions are different,” he explains.
Bonnell also gives presentations on healthy sexuality for older adults.
If you’re interested in educating older adults about relevant topics, visit Empowerline’s volunteer page