Joanne Williams
Editor
(Joanne Williams/TCJ – The ridicule and acceptance of peers is key to helping students with physical problems feel accepted. In this book, young people find it is possible to be friends.)
Imagine being so concerned about a situation that you could write a book about it.
Ryan Lash was and did just that. He wrote a book for children about dealing with hearing loss.
“Harvey’s Adventure: From Bully to Buddy,” is Lash’s attempt to help youngsters understand that being bullied is not the right way to approach people.
Lash said he has never thought of himself as a writer. “Absolutely not,” he said. “I am not a great reader either.” Yet, what he experienced as a franchise partner with Miracle Ear caught his attention, and his creativity.
He was working with audiologists in school districts and assisting with strategies for academic support. He also knew of bullying in school, especially for children with health issues.
“I combined the two,” Lash said, and came up with the book, an 18-page, colorful paperback through Christian Faith publishing. It took him about a year and a half to write.
He hopes books like his help wear down the stigma of those needing hearing assistance, at any age.
Lash and his wife, Emily, have a 5-year-old son, Hudson. They live in Olivet.
The book came out in March and is available online through most booksellers.
Lash is hoping the book will help families and educators alike.
Research says that “more than one in 10 children and teens aged 6-19 years have some degree of hearing loss in this country.
There are physical, mostly genetic causes, but hearing loss can be acquired and some, especially those coming from infections, are temporary.
The state of Michigan reports that about 400 children are born or acquire hearing loss during childhood each year. Attentive parents and teachers are often the ones who can observe a child’s reactions to sound.
