New York resident, Maggie Cavanaugh wrote a tweet about needing funds for new hearing aids, and didn’t think much of it when she sent it out. “It was like 11 o’clock at night and I went to sleep. The next morning, I had $50 in my Venmo, and thought, ‘Well this is nice, maybe I will hit it harder.’”
So, she took a screenshot of her tweet and posted it to her Instagram story. Then she made a TikTok video to explain her story a bit further. That’s when things went larger than she expected – Maggie went viral.
“In about 24 hours, I received more than $9,000 in donations from more than 600 people!”
She adds that while some were family and friends, some of the donors were total strangers. Donations ranged from $1, like she initially requested, to $100 each. Maggie’s journey getting to this point is one she is proud to tell. The 26-year-old was born hard of hearing, but wasn’t officially diagnosed until she was a toddler. She then went through speech therapy and her parents had her fitted for hearing aids.
“I was at the highest level of hearing loss and it was tough growing up,” she says. “But the positive is that I was rarely bullied – I was very lucky because I grew up in an understanding place.”
Maggie says that she has been wearing the same hearing aids for a decade, and it’s recommended by experts that hearing aids are replaced every five years. But that comes with a $7,000 price tag – something so many individuals and families simply cannot afford.
“Hearing aids are not covered by health insurance. That shocks many people, and this entire situation has been bringing about awareness of this major issue. Hearing aids are crucial, so why aren’t they covered by insurance?”
So, as the donations continue to pour in, what will Maggie do with the extra $2,000+ after she purchases her new pair of aids? “The money will be donated to kids, who need hearing aids. There are three organizations I am looking at specifically that specialize in helping children have access to the proper tools, like hearing aids, to help them thrive and be successful.”
Maggie cannot express enough gratitude for this simple but incredible act of kindness that was not just heartwarming but, more greatly, life-changing.
“My parents have had it hard since the recession and so my whole family is just overwhelmed. My mom and I both sat together and cried, knowing people were so willing to help out when I needed it most. It’s beyond anything I ever imagined. ”
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