Hearing Loops in Eugene and Springfield For people with hearing loss who wish to hear better, options are often limited to sitting closer or turning up volume. But the John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts, a Eugene performance venue, found another option. In 2017 it added technology to improve the listening experience, and now many destinations throughout Oregon have installed these ingenious devices. Local businesswoman Ginevra Ralph is co-founder of the Oregon Festival of American Music and director of education for the Shedd Institute. She spearheaded the Loop Lane County Committee to advocate for loop installation. Ralph’s friend and retired commercial real estate broker Sue Prichard has a family history of hearing loss and started wearing hearing aids in her late 40s. After some live performances where she couldn’t hear well, Prichard joined the fundraising effort to have hearing-loop technology installed in the Shedd’s halls and rooms. HEARING LOOP LOCATIONS Visitors can find loops at destinations throughout Oregon. Some venues have fully looped rooms and others may only have looped ticket counters or information desks; call the location to learn more. Here are some local places where you can try them. For more about hearing loops in our area, visit LoopYourLife.org. Information Centers • Eugene, Cascades & Coast Visitor Center • Springfield Visitor Center • Florence Visitor Center • Cottage Grove Visitor Center Eat, Drink & Shop • Drop Bear Brewery, Eugene • Territorial Seed Company, Cottage Grove Theaters • John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts, Eugene • Very Little Theatre, Eugene • Richard E. Wildish Community Theater, Springfield • Cottage Theatre, Cottage Grove • Florence Events Center, Florence Family-Friendly • University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History, Eugene • Shelton McMurphey Johnson House, Eugene • Eugene Science Center, Eugene • Splash! at Lively Park, Springfield • Bob Keefer Center, Springfield HERE’S HOW IT WORKS A hearing-loop system uses a wire loop installed around the perimeter of a room, usually in the walls or under the carpet. The wire is connected to an amplifier. The output from either a microphone or a sound system is delivered to the loop, which hearing aids easily pick up. A person who has a cochlear implant or a hearing aid with a telecoil can flip a small switch on the coil and clearly hear the speaker. “Traveling with hearing loss can be unsettling and uncomfortable,” says Prichard. In Europe she experienced loops as a common feature in airports, taxis, subways, hotels, grocery stores and banks. “To be able to go somewhere new and easily hear through a hearing loop is so reassuring and helpful,” she notes. “It’s wonderful because you don’t have to put on big headphones, you don’t have to self-identify as hard of hearing. You just click to turn it on, and suddenly you can hear. It’s direct and clean.” More than 40 million Americans have hearing loss, and public and private spaces are recognizing that travelers want to visit accessible destinations. Thanks to Ralph’s advocacy, Google Maps is mapping Oregon’s existing loops and adding more. “The list of looped places grows all the time,” Ralph says. You can help advocate for more hearing loops on your travels by asking if the technology is available. Look for signage that indicates a public place has loops, which can be identified through signage with the letter “T” and an outline of an ear. Travel Lane County | EugeneCascadesCoast.org | 541.484.5307 25 EXPLORE John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts MELANIE GRIFFIN (2)
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