Aws and his father, David, in the Christian section of Erbil, Iraq.
Make a pledge for Aws
As a special project, Thrive hopes to raise $18,000 USD for Aws’ (pronounced A-wis) cochlear implant. If you would like to make a pledge or would like more information about Aws or Thrive, please fill out the form below, and we will get back to you very soon.
What is a Cochlear Implant and how will it help Aws?
A cochlear implant is very different from a hearing aid. Hearing aids amplify sounds so they may be detected by damaged ears. Since Aws’ inner ear did develop properly, he needs something that will bypass damaged portions of his ear and directly stimulate the auditory nerve – A cochlear implant. Aws will hear when signals generated by the implant are sent by way of the auditory nerve to the brain, which recognizes the signals as sound. Hearing through a cochlear implant is different from normal hearing and takes time to learn. As a six-year-old, Aws can still learn how to hear with a cochlear implant, but time is running short. The longer it takes for Aws to get an implant, the hard it will be for his brain to relearn how to hear.