SALT LAKE CITY — Sonic Innovations Inc, has announced it is launching a new program in cooperation with the Armed Forces Foundation.  For each Sonic Innovations’ Velocity hearing aid purchased, the company will donate up to $50 to the Armed Forces Foundation from now through October 1.

"As a US-based company, Sonic Innovations is strongly committed to acknowledging the sacrifices our military personnel have made throughout the years," said Sonic Innovations CEO Sam Westover.  "The Department of Veterans Affairs has stated that hearing damage is the number one disability in the war on terror.  We know about the devastating impact hearing loss has on people, and we wanted to find a way to give back to these brave men and women.  So we decided to establish a fund to support our troops through the sales of our hearing aids.  Whether they need help with a hearing loss, educational expenses or emergency funds, Sonic Innovations hopes that our fund will make a difference in helping many service men and women improve their quality of life."

Sonic Innovations is the largest publicly traded US-based hearing aid manufacturer.  Velocity hearing aids represent the company’s premium line of digital products with hands-free, universal features that allow smooth transitions as the environment changes, adaptive directionality, adaptive feedback cancellation and auto-telephone.

The Armed Forces Foundation is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit organization that was established in 2001 to promote the morale, welfare and quality of life of the United States Armed Forces community, including  active-duty personnel, national guardsmen, reservists and retired personnel and their families.  Specifically, the foundation provides direct financial support to service members and their families for everyday living expenses, housing improvements, transition and career counseling, funeral arrangements, counseling and family retreats.  The foundation also pays for airline tickets and hotel bills so families can visit relatives in the armed services who have been hospitalized.

"Sonic Innovations is delighted to be able to play a role in providing much-needed donations to such a worthy and important organization as the Armed Forces Foundation," Westover said.  "We worked through the Department of Defense and Walter Reed Army Medical Center in identifying a group to work with, and they both recommended this foundation as first on their lists.  We also discovered in our initial discussions that 96 percent of all donations received are given back to military families.  With that incredible return rate, we hope our donation will truly have an impact on many people."


Source: Sonic Innovations Inc

ABOUT SONIC INNOVATIONS
Sonic Innovations, headquartered in Salt Lake City, has international offices and manufacturing centers across the globe. Through its distribution partners, Sonic Innovations provide hearing care services and solutions in more than 25 countries. Sonic Innovations is listed on the NASDAQ Global Market System (SNCI) and can be found online at www.sonici.com. Sonic Innovations has sold more than one million hearing instruments.