The COVID-19 pandemic has had such a massive impact on people’s lives in so many different ways, with one of them being the effect it has had on people’s employment.
Adrienne Joosse, a single mother of three, unfortunately experienced this firsthand when she lost her job last year due to the pandemic. And even though she has recently found work again, the impact of lost wages due to the pandemic is a particularly significant problem for Adrienne, for one specific reason.
The reason being that Adrienne’s 13-year-old son, Noah—who was born with severe hearing loss, along with his older sister Mckenna—requires replacement bilateral cochlear implants (device for partially restoring hearing) because the outside equipment on his current implants only had a lifespan of around 10 years and are now obsolete. And unfortunately because of what happened with Adrienne’s employment situation because of COVID, she is unable to afford the costs of the replacement implants.
Adrienne said that when Noah first received his bilateral implants at the age of three, the implant and the cochlears were funded by the Ontario government and Assistive Devices Program. But with the replacement implants, Adrienne mentioned that the Assistive Devices Program “only covers a small portion of the $29,000-plus with the monthly maintenance”, leaving Adrienne to try and figure out how to cover the rest of the bill.
“We were aware this was coming at some point. We were told when Mckenna (who also has bilateral cochlear implants) got her upgrades that this was coming in the next couple of years,” Adrienne said. “We were planning on upgrading them (the implants) last year, but COVID put a halt to everything and now we are at a point where we don’t have the option to wait anymore. COVID has really put a burden on being able to see the doctors first off, but also on having the savings now used for everyday life. We just don’t have an option at this time.”
Fortunately for Adrienne, on one fateful day, she was able to find help through a recommendation from a friend.
“I was speaking with my friend Sylvia Kolednik who runs Free or Cheap Kitchener’s Facebook group and has been working with Sandeep for advertising of Domino’s,” Adrienne said. “We were just talking about how Noah was in need of these (replacement implants) and she had mentioned that Domino’s had just asked her if she knew of anyone (who was in need of help). The next day she sent Sandeep a message and he called me to find out all the information.”
Sandeep Chaudhari is the owner of the Domino’s locations in the Waterloo region, and he is no stranger when it comes trying to do his part to help anyone in the community who needs it.
“We have always been involved in donating gift certificates or pizzas to charities in the community since I moved to Domino’s to purchase my first location in 2004 in Cambridge,” Sandeep said. “In the last five years, we started focusing on one family at a time in our community that is going through a difficult time. We try to do five-to-six a year. We let the managers decide which fundraisers to do next based on articles we have read, GoFundMe pages we have seen or someone sending an email describing their situation.”
Sandeep is hopeful in being able to help Adrienne and her family with this fundraiser, especially because someone close in Sandeep’s life also has had issues with hearing.
“My dad has hearing aids and we always have to talk extra loud just so he can hear,” Sandeep said. “I couldn’t imagine a child growing up (with hearing loss/problems) when there’s technology that’s available to help them hear. Our fundraiser hopefully raises enough money to buy the parts Noah needs.”
Given how hard the situation has been on her this year, Adrienne mentioned how appreciative she was for the fundraiser being put on by Sandeep and Domino’s for her family.
“I couldn’t be more humbled by this gesture,” Adrienne said. “This is going to help in ways I cannot express. The financial burden of this and life has been stressful on me this year, and any help will be a relief on our shoulders.”
Adrienne said that not only will the new implants upgrade Noah’s hearing because of the newer technology, but it will also “help with better verbal speech and give him better access to hearing silent vowels”.
“This will make a world of difference for Noah and help him to continue to hear,” Adrienne said.
UPDATE: Fundraiser successful, exceeds $5000 goal
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The fundraiser organized by Sandeep and his team at Domino’s was successful in reaching its target goal of $5200 for Noah’s replacement bilateral cochlear implants.
On June 23, from 10 am to 9 pm, 100% of the proceeds from the purchase of a large pepperoni or cheese pizza at any of the Cambridge, Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, and Paris Domino's locations went to support Adrienne and her family.
Adrienne said that Noah was at a loss for words when he found out the fundraiser was a success. She also expressed how thankful her and her family were for what Sandeep and everyone involved did for them.
“Noah, as well as myself and family, want to thank everyone for such an amazing thing they have been doing. Helping so many people in such amazing ways,” Adrienne said. “We (Noah especially) feel so honoured to have been chosen to receive this gift. We truly live in a wonderful community full of amazing people.”