Tullimbar two-year-old Emerson Fort shares a special bond with his baby brother Leo.
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Both boys were born with hearing loss, and engage in early intervention sessions together at The Shepherd Centre in Wollongong.
Parents Natalie and Jye said while their sons’ hearing impairments meant they would face challenges, their shared journey would help them along the way.
“Emerson will see that Leo has his hearing aids in and he points to his own ears and makes that connection that they’re growing up together with it,” she said.
“They love their sessions at The Shepherd Centre, they love talking, singing and reading aloud to each other, and they’re developing a really great bond.”
The family is supporting Loud Shirt Day this Friday, as a way to repay The Shepherd Centre for its immediate, and ongoing, support and assistance.
“We wouldn’t have known where to start without them, and their outlook really resonated with me from the start,” Mrs Fort said.
“They have these goals and expectations that these kids will develop and be on par with their peers, that they will fit into the school system and lead as normal a life as possible.
“They offer constant reassurance and guidance and are there to cheer on from the sidelines as your child reaches those goals.”
Emerson was born with a cleft lip and palate which led to conductive hearing loss due to problems in the middle ear. Leo meantime has sensorineural hearing loss which is hereditary, and shared by his father.
Both boys were fitted with hearing aids at just six weeks old, and have been making great progress thanks to the early intervention.
“With Emerson we’ve seen fantastic improvements with his confidence and his speech and language has come a long way,” Mrs Fort said.
“He’s working with us and responding to us really well in his sessions.”
One in 1000 Australians are born with a hearing loss and according to The Shepherd Centre, research shows that half of these are missing out on services due to funding shortfalls.
Loud Shirt Day is the children’s charity’s annual fundraising campaign – and encourages people to rock their brightest shirts to help raise funds and awareness.
“We’re helping more Australian chidlren with hearing loss than ever before learn to listen and speak,” Shepherd Centre CEO Jim Hungerford said.
“However we know that for every child we’re able to help, there’s another deaf child who’s missing out on this support.”
For details or to donate visit shepherdcentre.org.au