The Gift of Hearing

I could watch the people for hours and hours.

They're just going about their daily lives.

So loud and colourful.

She was born deaf and she's going blind.

But in Bangladesh, her senses are working overtime.

Jo Milne made the headlines two years ago

when a film capturing the first time she heard

became an internet sensation.

Could you hear those words?

-SOBBING:

-Yes!

It was a moment that changed everything.

It was absolutely incredible, because millions of people

all over the world watched that video,

and I've been told that they cried with me.

But as one sense opens, another is closing.

My sight is like peering through a letterbox.

So it would be like this kind of thing,

where I can't see my fingers in front of my face.

Whilst she still has her vision,

Jo is determined to fulfil a childhood pledge.

To help deaf children thousands of miles from home.

All this sound that he's never had, all of a sudden

has been brought into his world.

Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa...

SHE SOBS

What I love is just the emotion.

A mission Jo will never forget.

This is the gift of hearing.

Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh.

Home to 15 million people.

One of the most congested cities in the world.

And, if it's your first visit, a shock to the senses.

HORNS HONK

BIRD TRILLS

So much going on! I was like, looking this way, looking that way.

I've never known so much traffic, so much people.

It's very hustle-and-bustle, a vibrant and exciting place.

For the last two years,

Jo's been able to hear the world around her thanks to an implant.

Not something routinely available to children in Bangladesh.

To think that there's actually 5% of the children of Bangladesh

are actually profoundly deaf.

And that is 1.2 million.

And to think in the next few days we're just going to be giving

hearing aids to 500 children.

Today, Jo's on a journey to meet a family with three deaf children.

They live in a village two hours' drive from Dhaka.

It's her first look at the country outside the capital.

Thank you!

Oh, wow.

Thank you.

The main thing that hit me was how rural it was.

I mean, these people didn't really have access to public transport,

and that really was very thought-provoking,

because deafness is quite an isolating condition anyway.

Aminul, his sister Masuma and brother Aminula were all born deaf.

It's a chance for Jo to show the children her hearing aids.

I've got the hearing aid.

They can't speak each other's language,

but thanks to signing, communication is instant.

A lot of people don't realise that deaf people

are actually great communicators.

And it is absolutely fascinating just by facial expressions

and body language how you can pretty much know what a person is thinking,

what they're talking about.

Their mum, Rekhia, says life can be tough.

I think the stigma surrounding deafness,

I think it's like a worldwide issue.

It happens in Great Britain, too.

You would be surprised that deaf people do not even define themselves

to be disabled. We are just deaf.

Which is simply just a communication barrier.

Jo is making today's journey

with her best friend from school in Gateshead.

I met Amina when I was 11 years old and we had

an amazing friendship right from the start.

It was just the beginning of the day to the end of the day

we were together.

I even stopped going home for lunch,

because we wanted to spend the day with each other.

We had that special bond because unfortunately in school life,

people get picked on,

and we had a bit of bullying because we were both very different.

We were the only Asian family in the whole estate.

It was always a very warm and friendly place,

-where we grew up, wasn't it?

-Yes.

There were just some spiteful kids.

-There were some spiteful kids, but we were so close.

-So close.

And if people were picking on us, we didn't even realise,

because we were in our own world!

Amina got married in Gateshead when she was 16.

A few years later, she and her husband left England

for a new life in Bangladesh.

Jo and Amina lost touch.

Until this.

It was the moment that Joanne Milne thought

she would never experience.

-SOBBING:

-I'm sorry.

-It's all right. It's OK.

'For the first time in 39 years, she can hear people speaking to her.'

JO SOBS

The video of Jo hearing for the first time had 10 million hits.

One of them was from Amina.

They're now closer than ever.

I just wish we could give more, but we can't...

After such a long time apart,

Amina has noticed just how much Jo's sight has deteriorated.

The thing that upset me when you came,

everyone was describing you as a deaf and blind girl.

I was devastated when I heard that,

because I don't think of you like that.

Well, I am now, but...

..I'm still the same person.

-Oh...

-I know, I know.

As we grew up, we used to always say to each other that one day,

we would try to help the poor children in Bangladesh.

And to see this dream come true,

it has been a very emotional journey for us both.

The dream was to provide hearing aids for hundreds of children in Bangladesh.

But where to find them?

Obviously, with such a big project, I was worried, I was nervous.

There were so many children involved.

I mean, it was going to be over 500 children in the space of two days.

But support came from one of the biggest bands of all time.

# Let's send a little love all around the world

# For every man, woman, boy and girl... #

The group was formed to raise money for their two deaf brothers.

They're lifelong campaigners.

Jo grabbed her chance.

When I became an ambassador for the Hearing Fund UK,

this is when we were able to put the plan into action.

We used our contacts to try to see if we could set up

the project in Bangladesh.

Merrill's son Justin knew exactly who to speak to.

He made the breakthrough Jo had been looking for.

Oh, it's lovely to see you both.

'I couldn't have done it alone.'

It was to do with the teamwork, the contacts that the

Hearing Fund UK had and the Osmond family themselves.

We'll bring in the ear mould, the hearing aid,

the batteries and all the manpower to help get this started.

We're going to help a lot of kids with the gift of hearing.

You're not only an amazing ambassador

for not only the Hearing Fund,

but people throughout the whole world. So we're so proud of you.

Thank you for making this happen.

Go get 'em!

# Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey!

-# We're having a party!

-(Everybody)

# Gonna dance and play

# (What I say, now)

-# We're having a party

-(Yeah, yeah!)

# Put the books away

# Hey, looks like everybody showed up now

# It seems like 101

# But the prettiest girls in the neighbourhood... #

My name's Jo Milne, and I'm from the United Kingdom.

# Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey! #

Jo's arrival in Dhaka is big news.

So here is the ambassador for Hearing UK,

how will this present in Bangladesh?

Why Bangladesh?

For me, I've always had a connection with Bangladesh.

I felt like royalty! Because people were queueing up to meet me.

It was very humbling,

particularly parents from the families who had deaf children.

The ball's rolling.

Specialists are making moulds, so the devices will fit perfectly.

They're seeing hundreds, including the Begum family Jo met earlier.

Once Starkey became involved, it was like the icing on the cake.

It was then that I knew that the dream was going to happen.

And it was going to happen very soon.

I am very, very passionate to further my dream

and to continue with the gift of hearing. Thank you.

APPLAUSE

It's the big day.

I can't believe that the day is finally here.

I'm just hoping that everything goes well.

For some, it will be life-changing.

The families are all anxious, excited, nervous.

As we all are.

HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

Eager parents with their children have been queueing

since first light to hear their names called.

And it's all going to happen here.

-Now, is this all of the volunteers?

-Yes.

-Yes.

-You're sure?

-Yes.

It doesn't seem like enough.

The team brought on board by the Osmonds,

the Starkey Hearing Foundation, is on a ten-year mission to fit

a million hearing aids around the world.

You need to have someone who speaks Bangla at every single station so they can communicate.

This one clinic alone is costing £300,000.

You have to be patient, because some of them don't hear.

It needs to run like clockwork.

I think the challenge is making sure that all the volunteers know where they're assigned to.

How are you guys?

'Basic project management organisation and some basic

'training stuff that ideally would have been done yesterday'

when we set up the site, but because it wasn't,

it's OK, we can handle it.

We can do it today.

OK, cool, thank you so much.

Absolutely.

ALL: One, two, three, yay!

Whoo!

APPLAUSE

Word's got round.

The waiting area is swamped.

This is more than was bargained for.

For the families, it means a long wait in intense Dhaka heat.

For the volunteers, a challenge in crowd control.

One minute, one minute! Wait, wait.

When I saw the hundreds and hundreds of people outside,

it really hit me how many people

were going to receive these hearing aids.

Amina's found the people to set up the entire event -

friends from a local Rotary club.

We have had to go through a lot of difficulties in organising this,

but we are thrilled and we can look forward to organising more

and more camps in future.

When I actually started doing this project,

I didn't have any idea how I'm going to do it,

but it is really, really very touching.

For the hearing aids to work, the ears need to be perfectly clear.

The lucky ones are marked and sent straight through.

For others, though, it's a trip to the cleaning station.

Later today, it will finally happen.

I mean, 500 children, and most of them are actually here right now.

This is when the magic's about to happen, but at the same time,

we want it to be done right.

So I'm excited, anxious-excited.

It's going to be all right.

THEY SOB

It hasn't even started yet, and...

Wow, it is just emotional.

Once attached to the earpiece,

the hearing aid is turned up gradually

until the right volume's found.

The result - an earful of sound.

Mah, mah, mah, mah, mah.

It's magical watching a child hear for the very first time.

Mah, mah, mah, mah, mah.

THE CHILD LAUGHS

Mah, mah.

Mah, mah.

-Mah, mah, mah, mah...

-He's hearing, isn't he?

HE LAUGHS

Well, this is brand-new for him.

All this sound that he's never had all of a sudden

has been brought into his world.

Pah, pah, pah, pah.

Yup. See, he's hearing.

That's amazing. Yay!

Yay!

-Yay!

-APPLAUSE

Yay!

But getting it right is often a process of trial and error.

-Very nice.

-They're hearing aids, because they don't make you hear.

You have to remember that.

They give you a concept of sound.

Hello. Hello.

The high sound can be a bit painful.

Hello, hello. Hello.

When you're in this room, you don't realise that probably the high sound

will eventually stabilise.

Good?

These are digital hearing aids which help these kids and people

to identify the sounds, and which help them to live a normal life.

'I can't imagine life without my hearing aid.

'I mean, I started wearing my hearing aid when I was two years old,

'and those hearing aids have enabled me to be who I am.

'And I believe that all deaf people should be proud of who they are.

'But at the end of the day, it is a hearing world.

'And these hearing aids have enabled me to be a part of it.'

Hello. Hello.

Hello.

11-year-old Alem has never heard before.

Hello.

-Hello.

-Yay!

It's something about the eyes of the children, and I'm, like,

looking in their eyes, and the eyes are lighting up.

Obviously all the children are different. They're having different reactions.

Some are having, like, quiet emotions. Some are crying.

Some are like, "What is happening?"

But it's going to be life-changing for the kids, yeah.

-Hi.

-Hi.

I'm a nervous wreck. I'm an emotional wreck.

And we've got hundreds more.

Absolutely hundreds more. It's not over yet.

No, it's not over yet.

Sadly, not every fitting ends with good news.

Hello.

Hello. Hello.

The child is not hearing.

His hearing cells are dead.

The signals, the sound, is not reaching the brain

for the child to respond.

But for most, life is about to change.

For them, and their loved ones.

Yeah!

This is what it's all about.

Bringing families together.

-Thank you as well.

-Thank you, thank you.

-You're welcome.

A-a-ah.

A-a-ah.

O-o-oh.

Ba-bah. Ba-bah...

'There are more than 360 million people in the world who have

'disabling hearing loss,

and over 32 million children who have hearing loss.

We know we can't get into the entire world to help them,

but we can make an impact.

Already, you can see how she's interacting with them now

and she's turning from left to right.

She knows that I am talking now.

Can you hear me?

Yes!

I like that!

This is the gift of hearing.

This is what it's all about.

It's amazing, amazing.

Yay!

But with the children facing so many challenges,

Jo needs to know the hearing aids really are going to make a difference.

She's travelling out of town to see for herself.

It's a long journey through some of the poorest parts of Bangladesh.

News of her visit has spread fast.

All eyes are on Jo.

But she has her sights set on one particular resident.

16-year-old Morium is partially deaf and blind.

Are they feeling comfortable?

Are they comfortable?

MAN TRANSLATES

Morium's had a tough childhood.

At the age of ten, she was expelled from school for poor performance.

Well, I've got my hearing aid...

It cut her off from education and her friends.

Yes, we're going to go for a walk.

Ah.

Can you hear, can you hear the pigeons there, yeah?

Are you the shy one?

'She's not as withdrawn.

'You can see her actually getting more involved.

'You can see her actively talking to the other children.

'And this is amazing.'

'The hearing aid, it has broken down all those isolating barriers,

'but there are thousands and thousands more children like Morium.'

It's been so lovely to meet you.

Can I hug you?

Morium still has much catching up to do,

but thanks to her hearing aids, her life is back on track.

I will come back.

I will come back and see you. Yeah?

HORNS HONK

Day two of the hearing clinics.

Raqqia and her kids are waiting.

It's the moment of truth.

Pah, pah, pah.

She can hear.

Already, you can see the connection with, like, the mums.

They can hear their mums' voices, and they are looking towards them.

I just hope that these hearing aids can give them the chance to

be the best they can be.

Hello.

Hello.

The fittings are almost done.

And all's gone smoothly.

Well, almost.

OK.

Pah, pah, pah.

Pah, pah, pah, pah.

Wa-see.

Tell the mother, the child must use the hearing aid

as long as possible.

That's how it's going to become easy for the child to use it and

get the benefit of it.

There are still many challenges ahead if the youngsters' lives

are to be improved for good.

Parents are trained to look after the aids and change batteries.

A team of professionals and volunteers

will provide support over the coming months.

'The after-care, to me, is the most important part

'and you have to do this yourself.

'You have to be responsible for the maintenance of the hearing aid,

'the battery change and vice versa.

'So, this is when we have to educate the families

'so they know what to do.'

It's Jo's last day in Dhaka.

It's been an extraordinary seven days.

'Something's happened.'

I've fallen in love with the country.

APPLAUSE

My life has changed and I'm having this incredible

new sense of hearing.

CHEERING

I feel a connection to the country and its people.

'All the emotions that were happening

'when the hearing aids were being switched on.

'Watching the children,

'the way their eyes would light up.'

THE CHILD LAUGHS

Yay!

MAN CLAPS

'It's been very rewarding.

'I feel very humbled.'

There's so many more children that I want to reach.

So it's not over.