The Sounds of Childhood

Celebrating 20 Years of The Daniels Center for Children’s Hearing

A parent’s voice. A friend’s giggle. A dog’s bark. A silly song.

Childhood is filled with joyful sounds, and the goal of The Bill Daniels Center for Children’s Hearing at Children’s Hospital Colorado is to help kids enjoy the acoustics of life.

Cable television pioneer Bill Daniels suffered hearing loss related to his service as a decorated fighter pilot in World War II. His hearing loss worsened over the years, and even with the most advanced treatment at the time, his range of hearing was limited.

Daniels’ personal experience was the catalyst for The Daniels Fund to make a $3 million gift to Children’s Colorado in 2005 to create The Bill Daniels Center for Children’s Hearing and to fund services and programs for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

“We are the only site in Colorado—and in this region of the country — that brings together comprehensive audiology, speech-language and learning supports in one location,” said Kristin Uhler, PhD, co-director of the Center and the Kelley Family/Schlessman Family Scottish Rite Masons Chair in Childhood Language Disorders.

Helping Kids with Hearing Loss

The Center offers audiologic diagnosis and management, medical and surgical intervention, hearing therapy, speech and language services, and family support for deaf and hard-of-hearing infants, toddlers, children and teens.

Ongoing investment by the Daniels Fund over two decades has enabled Children’s Colorado to add audiology booths at locations across the state, increase parent education and offer financial assistance for outpatient services and genetic testing.

Patricia Yoon, MD, co-director of the Center, is grateful for support for genetic testing as a key Daniels Fund investment. Children’s Colorado is the lead site for a National Institutes of Health study that is furthering knowledge about the genetic causes for childhood hearing loss. “Gene therapy for hearing loss is on the cusp of becoming a reality, so this is a particularly exciting time to be working in this area,” she said.

“In short,” Dr. Uhler concludes, “our goal is to ensure that every child with hearing differences has the same opportunity to succeed — whether they live in Denver, a mountain town or a rural farming community.”

Individual patient success aligns closely with the Daniels Fund mission.

“Bill Daniels was a visionary who believed in creating opportunities for people to reach their full potential,” said Hanna Skandera, president and CEO of The Daniels Fund, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.”