Hearing Care for Needy Children

Since 1987, the sole purpose of the KEX Kids Fund Program is to provide vision and hearing care including examinations, eyeglasses and hearing aids to children whose families cannot otherwise afford these necessary items that increase learning and communication. 

The KEX Kids Fund works with a network of care providers who offer their services at reduced cost.  We address the roots of these problems, providing solutions.  This is a mission that has served well over 27,000 children in our community, and closely aligns with your trust’s mission of supporting projects and activities to enhance the health, education and welfare of Oregon children. This assistance will increase early scholastic learning (80% visual) and communication and contribute to educational success.

The KEX Kids Fund provides service completely equitably with no regard for the student’s ethnicity, race, demographic, etc. During the 2019-2020 fiscal and school year, the KEX Kids Fund benefited a broad and diverse swath of ethnicities and demographics (as self-reported by recipients) and the majority of service vouchers were provided to non-white students.

The 2019-2020 school year has challenged everyone in the same way this year has challenged communities all over America and the world in coping with the novel coronavirus, Covid-19. The school year, and the KEX Kids Fund access to students in need of vision and hearing assistance was cut short in March, 2020, by the pandemic and steps to lessen its impact. None the less, the KEX Kids Fund continues to provide first quality vision and hearing exams for children in the Portland Metro (as well as all over Oregon) as well as furnishing brand new eyeglasses and hearing aids for those children in need. 

During the same period, (July, 2019 – June, 2020), the KEX Kids Fund provided hearing exams and assistance as follows:

 July, ’19: - 2                       Jan.  ’20: - 3        

Aug. ’19: - 1                        Feb. ’20: - 1

Sept ’19: - 5                        Mar. ’20: - 4

Oct. ’19: - 6                         April ’20: - 3

Nov. ’19: - 4                        May ’20: - 0

Dec. ’19: - 2                         June ’20: - 1

Total Applications 2019-2020 = 32

 During the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the KEX Kids Fund partnered with the following 13 hearing services provider:

Vancouver ESD                      Washington School for the Deaf            Columbia Regional Program

Willamette ESD                      NW Regional ESD                                  Linn-Benton-Lincoln ESD

CDRC                                     OHSU                                                      Renata Anderson, Pendleton

Providence St. Vincent           Peace Health Hospital, Eugene              Oregon Medical Group, Eugene

Multnomah ESD

The KEX Kids FUnd wishes to express its sincere thanks to our donors, supporters and our providers throughout the KEX Kids Fund service area. As Helen Keller told us, not having her vision broke connection with things" while not having her hearing isolated her from "people".

During the first quarter of 2020, January - March, the KEX Kids Fund received a toal of 8 applications as follows:  January - 3    February - 1    March - 4

Application by County was a s follows:

Multnomah - 1    Benton - 1    Clackamas - 1    Lane - 1   Linn - 1    Morrow - 1    Polk - 1    Yamhill - 1

Our thanks also goes out to the speech language pathology therapists throughout the schools of Oregon and SW Washington who help find the need that drives finding the solution for these children.