JustinOsmond's Story

    Justin Osmond’s Story



Hi my name is Justin Osmond, the second son of Merrill &
Mary Osmond. I was born in Provo, Utah with a sensoral-
nueral hearing loss and since there were no new-born
screening at the time, I wasn’t diagnosed until I was 2 years
old. After being diagnosed with a severe/profound hearing
loss, my parents immediately put me into the best speech
therapy and oral rehab programs in the country. Ever since
my early childhood-intervention in being diagnosed, I’ve
been raised wearing various hearing instruments. After 15
years of intense speech therapy, I’m extremely humbled and
grateful that I can now speak with passion and hear with
clarity.

Coming from a very musical background, I got started on the
violin at the age of four. I later added the viola, the drums,
and the piano to my collection of instruments. When I turned
16, I started making music with my own siblings – three
brothers and two sisters - in our family group called The Big
C and Little O's. The band mixed classical music with gospel,
"ho-down tunes" and other selections. We played regional
concerts in the Rocky Mountain area, plus a regular schedule
of dates over a four-year period at The Osmond Family
Theater in Branson, Missouri which provided for more than
2,000 viewers a day.

At the age of 14, I had the dream of becoming an Eagle
Scout. As part of my service project, I decided to help one of
my friends named Robert with a new pair of hearing aids. He
came from a very poor financial background and wasn’t able
to afford a new pair of top-of-the-line hearing aids. So I took
upon myself the task in raising enough funding to help my
friend with the Gift of Better Hearing. After raising the
sufficient funds to purchase a new set of hearing
instruments, I invited Robert into the hearing clinic. What
took place next will forever remain in my heart. As I handed
Robert his new hearing aids, there was a mighty change in
his countenance as he broke down with tears of joy and
happiness. The change that was wrought in his life brought a
change to mine. Ever since this miracle took place, I’ve
decided to dedicate my life to helping others who may not be
able to afford hearing aids and provide for them the Gift of
Better Hearing.

Shortly after becoming an Eagle Scout, I served as a
missionary for the LDS Church where I led a team of more
than 30 associates throughout the United Kingdom. It was
here in the British Isles where I got exposed to sign
language. Therefore, British Sign Language (BSL) became my
second language. After returning to the United States, I took
up American Sign Language (ASL) and currently use that
language to this day when requested.

My musical talent earned me a prestigious Sterling
Scholarship in music to attend Utah State University where I
eventually earned a Bachelors degree in Marketing. During
my educational studies, I was placed on the Honorary Dean’s
List for two consecutive years, accepted into the National
Golden Key Society, named the Retention V.P. for the LDSSO
Institute Program, and served as a Building Youth Counselor
for more than 20,000 youth across the U.S.

At this time, I am currently the Public Relations
Coordinator/Spokesperson for The Starkey Hearing
Foundation. I have recently returned from trips to India,
Africa, Central America, Peru, Venezuela, Columbia, etc… to
help fit hearing impaired children with the Gift of Better
Hearing. I have helped build the SHF to establishing more
than 100 humanitarian missions a year and also providing
more than 30,000 hearing aids to under-priviledged children
all over the US and to over a hundred countries worldwide.

I continue as the official spokesperson for the SHF as I travel
across the U.S. doing keynote presentations, seminars,
conventions, speeches, and workshops for thousands of
doctors, hearing specialists, speech therapists and others
within the hearing industry and Corporate America.
I have participated in helping raise millions of dollars to help
promote hearing health awareness through their annual ‘So
the World May Hear’ Gala.  Working together with many
special guests such as Larry King, Jay Leno, Garth Brooks,
Clint Eastwood, Steve Martin, Sharon Osbourne, Elton John
and many more, this outreach program will be able to help
many more hearing impaired children reach their greatest
aspirations in life. Along with his fundraising capabilities,
media contacts, marketing skills, his relations with the public,
and many more, he continues to touch the lives of the
hearing impaired worldwide.

I will never forget my Grandmother’s dream when she
started the Osmond Foundation primarily to help her two
oldest sons with the Gift of Better Hearing. This wonderful
cause became world-renowned as the Children’s Miracle
Network. After much consideration, I decided to carry on the
Legacy of my Grandmother’s original dream in assisting those
who need hearing help. As a result, I formed a charity called
“The Olive Osmond Perpetual Hearing Fund.”  This will
allow an on-going commitment to helping those who are in
need of hearing aids, but simply cannot afford them. I’m
proud to carry on the Legacy my Grandmother once started.

My desire and passion in helping the hearing impaired is so
strong that I went ahead and started “The Osmond
Hearing Centers.”  This will be a place where my caring staff
provides professional services to make sure our customers
get the help and support they need. Like me, the Osmond
Hearing Centers will continue to help our deaf associates
hear the precious sounds that they’ve been missing out on.

I knows first-hand what it is like to live in a world without
sound. I share my story with the world in order to help all
people understand the struggles of being hearing impaired
and how to overcome them. I live by my personal motto: “I
may have a hearing loss, but that hearing loss does not have
me.”