Starkey Hearing Foundation first visited Armenia with a charity mission in October 2017 and handed out about 4,000 hearing aids to deaf people. A few days ago the charity mission returned to Armenia, bringing about 2,500 hearing aids for 1,300 patients. A lot has happened in Armenia between these two visits, including a revolution, which was called “velvet.”

William Austin, the founder of Starkey Hearing Foundation, says he can feel that a lot has changed in Armenia since his previous visit.

“I can feel like there’s been some weight lifted off the shoulders of people, there’s a lot of joy in the faces, and it’s like they believe in the future,” he told NEWS.am Medicine. “I see the joy in the young people; it’s very nice to see it.”

Dr. Austin did like the people in Armenia during his first visit, too. According to him, people here were friendly, caring, grateful, polite and patient, and that’s why working in Armenia was a pleasure for him and his colleagues.

During the current visit, William Austin and his wife, Tani Austin, met with President Armen Sarkissian and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia.

“It was very nice to see how cooperative they were; they were really reaching out to offer their help,” Austin said. “The President offered us a full-time space to provide our aftercare to continue caring for people in Yerevan; it was very nice of him. We didn’t ask him; he was just forthcoming and said that we want to do this to help the cause.”

Starkey Hearing Technologies, which is owned by William Austin, manufactures hearing aids. Starkey Hearing Foundation was founded in 1984 to provide hearing aids to people who cannot afford them. It operates around the world, and Armenia is the 107th country visited by its charity missions.