June 28, 2007
With the help of celebrity roster that includes Jim Belushi, Lou Ferrigno, Glenn Frey, Goldie Hawn, Jay Leno, Kenny Loggins, Marlee Matlin, Leslie Nielsen, Mickey Rooney, Kevin Sorbo, Robert Wagner, and others, the Starkey Hearing Foundation reported it raised $4.5 million at its annual “So the World May Hear” Awards Gala, June 23 in St Paul, Minn.
“For the seventh year in a row, we had tremendous support from our friends all over the world who helped us raise an amazing $4.5 million to further our mission of promoting hearing health awareness and helping the world to hear,” William F. Austin, founder of the Starkey Hearing Foundation, says. “I offer my heartfelt thanks to everyone who was a part of this year’s gala and who, through their generosity of time and money, helped make the world a better place for so many children.”
The Starkey Hearing Foundation donates hearing aids to underprivileged children in the United States and internationally. Thanks to funds raised during the annual event, the foundation has been able to donate an estimated 200,000 hearing aids in the past seven years to children in need.
This year’s gala included performances by Jim Belushi and the Sacred Heart Band, Jay Leno, Jaime Thietten, Glenn Frey, and Kenny Loggins, who closed the show with a rendition of Footloose. In addition, the foundation honored five individuals who have each made a significant contribution to humanity, including philanthropists Al and Cathy Annexstad, owners of Federated Insurance; Former United States Surgeon General C. Everett Koop; Academy Award-winning actress Goldie Hawn; and Baseball Hall of Famer Tommy Lasorda.
Other celebrities who attended included Buzz Aldrin, Peter Alexander, Scott Carpenter, Norm Crosby, Robert Culp, Lou Ferrigno, Peter Marshall, Marlee Matlin, Sam Moore, Leslie Nielsen, Arnold Palmer, Mickey Rooney, Jane Seymour, Barbara Sinatra, Kevin Sorbo, and Robert Wagner.
Learn more about the Starkey Hearing Foundation at www.sotheworldmayhear.org.
