[Written by Patrick Bean]
If one has ever been to a cricket match in Bermuda, you have likely seen her. Smiling. Cheering. Embracing players, officials, and strangers like lifelong friends. That is Sharon Symonds.
Sharon loves people. It is simply who she is.
By trade, she has given her life to the healthcare industry, a field where caring is not just a job description, but a calling. By passion, she is an ambassador for Bermuda cricket, a tireless community servant who believes that sport, like life, is about bringing people together.
And Sharon is deaf. Except when she uses her cochlear implant device, the world is silent. But silence has never silenced Sharon.
“A few years ago my hearing changed suddenly, and what surprised me almost as much as the loss itself was how isolating it could feel,” explained Sharon, whose story is featured in Whispered Journeys: Softly Spoken but Loudly Understood, a book by disability awareness advocate Dr Latisha Porter-Vaughn. “My implants have given so much back, but I know firsthand that even the best outcomes don’t take away the daily challenges of hearing loss.
“Many people think deafness is a limitation. But I have learned it is just a different way of listening.”
Born into a world that often equates hearing with understanding, Sharon chose to understand with her heart. She learned to navigate a hearing world, advocate for herself, work, serve, and love loudly in a world that was at times quiet to her.
Then came the cochlear implant – not a cure, but a tool, a bridge, an opportunity. For Sharon, it was not about becoming “hearing” – it was about having more options, more access, more connection.
“It opened a door,” she said. “But I had to be brave enough to walk through it.”
That bravery is what she wants others to know about. That opportunities today didn’t exist a generation ago. That hearing loss does not have to mean lost hope. That technology like cochlear implants, hearing aids, early screening, and support services can change lives – but only if people know about them, can access them, and feel no shame in seeking them.
“I’ve decided to do something I’ve dreamed about for a long time: start a support group right here in Bermuda,” said Sharon. “Hear Us Now Bermuda is for adults with hearing loss, cochlear implants, hearing aids and/or both, parents and families of children with hearing loss, and anyone who wants to walk alongside us.
“To get it off the ground, I’m forming a small founding Committee and would love several people from among the general community to join and help shape it,” she added.
Among those who have joined Sharon in encouraging others with hearing loss and informing those without are Ashley DeSilva and Christine Wellman. Both suffered hearing loss late in life, with each having found “new life”, the former via the use of cochlear implants and the latter through the more traditional hearing aid method.
“Going deaf changed my life in ways I never could have imagined,” started Ashley, who was so amazed by Sharon’s transformation that she decided to explore a cochlear implant. “There was an Ashley before I lost my hearing, and there is an Ashley now with cochlear implants.
“Honestly, I’m still trying to figure out how those two versions of me fit together.
“Losing my hearing wasn’t just about not being able to hear anymore. It changed how I communicate, how I experience the world, my relationships, my confidence, my independence, and even how I see myself.
“There were days when I felt like I had lost a part of who I was. I had to grieve the life I knew while somehow continuing to live it.
“Then came the cochlear implants. They gave me something I desperately needed — the possibility of hearing again. But getting my hearing back didn’t magically bring the old Ashley back. Instead, I became someone new.
“Ashley with the cochlear implants. Ashley learning how to navigate conversations differently. Learning what I need. What I deserve, and what kind of life I want.
“Sometimes I still miss the person I was before all of this happened. Sometimes I wonder who I would be if I had never gone deaf. But I’m slowly learning that I don’t have to become the old Ashley again.
“I have become a new Ashley. One who has been through things she never asked for but survived anyway. One who has learned that losing something doesn’t mean losing herself. One who is still figuring things out, still healing, still dreaming, and still becoming.
“I don’t have all the answers yet. I’m still figuring out who Ashley is with the cochlear implants. And maybe that’s okay. Maybe this isn’t the end of my story. Maybe this is the beginning of finding myself all over again.”
Like Sharon’s, Christine’s story was featured in Dr Porter-Vaughn’s book. Born in Barbados, Christine migrated to England, returned to Barbados, and then settled in Bermuda.
In the chapter entitled “Assisted Hearing: Growing Into Your Own Skin”, Christine’s journey with hearing loss is told with honesty and emotional depth, tracing her path from initial denial to embracing assisted hearing.
The narrative highlights the challenges and growth Christine encountered along the way, emphasising resilience, empathy, and the importance of genuine connection in overcoming adversity.
The trio share the goal of uniting people to build better lives for everyone in Bermuda affected by hearing loss.
Suggested Sharon: “Get your hearing checked. Support your loved ones who are hard of hearing. Learn to face a deaf person when you speak to them. Be patient. Be inclusive. And never, ever underestimate what a deaf person can do.”
NB: For those interested in being a part of “Hear Us Now Bermuda”, contact Sharon at [441] 531-7991 or email: sharonsymonds@hotmail.com.