Mark Twain said, “Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see” and kindness is something Chrissy Riggins never runs short on. She has been a daycare provider, a fitness coach, a baker, and so much more in this community and when she started Strike for HIKE in 2020 her community showed up for her.

According to the CDC, 2 to 3 out of every 1,000 children in the U.S. are born with detectable hearing loss in one or both ears. Chrissy’s journey with her daughter and being able to afford the hearing devices was a journey that began in April 2019 with Dr. appointments, which led to more questions than answers sometimes. Chrissy was documenting every part of her journey on Facebook and because of those posts, one of her friends was able to help her get in contact with her daughter who is very involved with the HIKE Foundation. Her friend helped her apply for the program and even wrote a letter of recommendation and mailed it herself.

Months passed and the bills were piling up. Insurance doesn’t cover hearing aids and her daughter needed not one but two. Her daughter's right ear is moderate and her left is profound. They were able to rent a loaner, one from Boys Town but only for her left because it was the worse of the two. Months had gone by and, “ I’ll never forget that day, it was a warm day outside and I was so angry. I got a phone call from Kelsey from HIKE and she said ‘We just wanted you to know that you have been approved for $4,500 for both of her hearing aids,’ I fell to the floor” She was $600 away from her goal from a private donor and she had been approved for HIKE. The rock that had been weighing her down was suddenly lifted, “my kid was gonna be able to hear, and not get in trouble for not paying attention, and not feel bad about herself because her whole class got up and left and she has no idea what's going on and she is so tired of asking.”

So what is the HIKE foundation? HEARING IMPAIRED KIDS ENDOWMENT was founded in 1985 and Chrissy’s family was the first in Otoe County to receive from them. Chrissy is one donor who really wanted to give back. She has been an avid bowler her whole life and has done many Bowling for Boobs fundraisers. Her grandma survived due to those fundraisers and she decided to Strike for HIKE to fundraise to give the gift of hearing to other children.

In January 2020, she was able to throw the first Strike for HIKE and raise a total of $3,400 to donate. She always intended for this to be an annual thing and to keep giving back, but the world shut down during COVID. Chrissy is now ready to bring back this amazing fundraiser to keep giving back to the Foundation that helped her child hear. Chrissy and Lori Waldron with Arbor Lanes are putting on the second annual Strike for HIKE on May 6th.  

Rachel Shenton is a deaf actress who stated in an interview, ‘With the right support, a deaf child can do exactly the same as a hearing child, yet constantly, they’re being failed.’ Chrissy and Lori are actively leading their children to success and showing kindness and generosity along the way. Come out Saturday, May 6th to Strike for HIKE and help give the gift of hearing.