Meet Jack

Jack's Story

Jack is a rambunctious little boy, full of life, wonder, and promise. At birth, Jack was diagnosed with congenital CMV (cytomegalovirus) which was contracted in utero. CMV is a common virus that can infect almost anyone but if contracted while in utero, it can cause many complications to the unborn child including neurological damage, blindness, and hearing loss. Jack’s exposure to the CMV virus caused him neurological damage, motor delays in his development, and profound hearing loss. He spent the first fifteen days of his life in the NICU where the doctors weren’t sure he would even survive, but Jack was a fighter and continues to be a fighter to this day. Surrounded by love and caring doctors, Jack’s story can now live on to encourage others.

 
 

Ohio Valley Voices

After learning about the amazing work Ohio Valley Voices (OVV) does for children with hearing loss, Jack’s family knew they wanted to enroll him as early as possible so that he could have a higher chance of learning spoken language. Located in Loveland, OH, OVV is a school where children from birth to eight years old can receive a wide variety of services including speech, physical and occupational therapies, and a fully equipped audiology clinic. OVV teaches children who are deaf or hard of hearing to listen and talk. Jack enrolled in OVV’s parent/infant program at just four months old and he received cochlear implants at nine months old.

Taking it step by step

Not only is Jack profoundly deaf but he has neurological damage to several areas of his brain, so he has to fight hard to overcome all of these challenges daily. He finally mastered walking a few days short of his second birthday, a huge accomplishment for him and his excited family. Jack continues to make tremendous strides in his speaking and overall development due to his determination and the many services he is provided with at OVV. Jack’s family is so proud of his many accomplishments thus far and is extremely grateful for Ohio Valley Voices and all the dedication and love they provide to not only him, but all their students.

"Jack's future is extremely bright and we cannot wait to see what his future holds"

Jack's Family