As a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham (England), some years ago I listened to a talk about the number of hearing aids being given out in South Africa. In KwaZulu-Natal, around 150 hearing aids were given out to those with hearing loss. Whereas the actual number required was closer to 150,000!

As a retired estate agent, I was mindful of the many hearing aids I had witnessed over the years, lying unused on bedside tables or gathering dust in drawers.

I spoke to my own father who wore hearing aids. He had 4 pairs of 'old' hearing aids! He gave them to me and I got in touch with an audiologist to gift them to somebody who could use them. This started a process which has now been going for over 25 years.

I have now collected over 44,000 hearing aids from private individuals, Hearing Clinics, Audiology Departments of NHS Trusts, and Retail Suppliers.

I work with a network of Audiologists around the world where there is known demand for unwanted hearing aids. This is vital so as to ensure that what I send reaches places where there is genuine demand and need.

Currently I am supplying both hearing aids and other Audiological equipment to Zimbabwe, Malawi, Gambia, Israel, Dominican Republic, Fiji, Tanzania, Lebanon, Jordan, Brazil, Romania, Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Nigeria & Syria.

Paul Wood

To receive photos of young children, smiling from ear to ear when they receive their first hearing aids, who in many cases are hearing for the very first time in their lives, is a real tear-jerker I can assure you!