Katherine Bouton

President

I’ve had progressive bilateral hearing loss since age 30. The cause is unknown. In 2009, I got a cochlear implant in my left ear after ten years with a hearing aid. I continue to wear a hearing aid in my right. Shortly after getting the implant, I left my decades-long job as an editor at The New York Times, so that I could concentrate on relearning to hear with a cochlear implant. I wrote a memoir of my experience with hearing loss called “Shouting Won’t Help” (2013) and later a guide to living with hearing loss called “Smart Hearing” (2018). I write a weekly blog called “Smart Hearing.”  I am the immediate past president of the New York City Chapter of HLAA and served on HLAA’s national board of trustees from 2012 to 2020. I’m a frequent speaker on hearing-loss issues.


David Landsberger

Vice President

I am an auditory scientist at the NYU Langone Medical Center. I study hearing impairment and how the auditory system responds to electrical stimulation with a cochlear implant. My work focuses on diverse topics such as improving cochlear implant algorithms, electrode designs, and music perception through a cochlear implant. In 2019, I co-founded York Sound, which is a company developing a noise reduction algorithm for hearing aids and cochlear implants that specifically removes the background of other people talking. I originally became involved in HLAA through the chapters in Southern California. There I met Katherine Bouton who invited me to participate in the HLAA NYC chapter when I moved to New York in 2013. I have been an active member of the chapter ever since. And I love ice-cream with crunchy things in it.


Maura Olson

Secretary

Although I grew up in Long Island, my heart has always been in Manhattan. I’ve lived in the West Village for over forty years.

I spent most of my career teaching in the Bethpage elementary school I attended as a child. When I began struggling to hear my students, speakers were installed in the classroom and my students used microphones when they spoke, Oh, did they love that!!! Their grandparents loved the mics as well. Over the years, they had never understood a word when they came to Grandparent’s Day, but in my room they heard everything.

After retiring from Bethpage in 2011, I attended Hunter College and earned a degree in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education. Upon graduation, I worked for the DOE as a DHH itinerant teacher.

I live with my dog, Clara, who is many doses of joy every day. I love walking with her and enjoy reading, visiting museums, watching dance performances, and meeting friends to chat.


Myra Schreibman.jpeg

Myra Schreibman

Treasurer

I believe I was born with hearing loss, although I didn’t start wearing hearing aids until I was five years old, beginning with one body aid and then two digital behind-the-ear hearing aids.  I mainstreamed in public school and high school, where I was given speech and lipreading therapy through New York Eye and Ear. I received my BA from Pace University.  Now I am semi-retired as a bookkeeper.  I have been involved with HLAA for 20 years, starting with the Westchester chapter - where I was Program Chair from 2004-2006.  In 2007 I joined the NYC chapter, was involved with the programming committee, then was elected Treasurer.  I was heavily involved as co-treasurer for the Westchester / New York City Walk4Hearing, first started by Anne Pope years ago.


Jon Taylor

Program Director

It is likely that my hearing loss resulted from an inherited vulnerability to the loud sounds I encountered during my career as a freelance trombonist. When I got my first hearing aids in 1991, I only wore them in the privacy of my home to protect that career. In 1997, when my hearing loss had progressed from mild to severe, I stopped performing and wore my aids in public. During my career, I performed with the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Paul Taylor Dance Company, NY Philharmonic, Orpheus Ensemble, more than twenty Broadway shows and numerous ballet companies.

Since joining in 2016, HLAA has become an important part of my life. Through the chapter, I have learned many things and made new friends that help me live a full life with hearing loss. I am fortunate that my three children, two grandchildren, and wonderful wife, Mary, are all very supportive.


 

Holly Cohen

Holly Cohen HLAA NYC

I am a hearing health advocate and speaker who has lived with a moderate hearing loss since my 20’s. As a Career Coach for over 30 years, whenever clients were struggling to hear I would take out my hearing aid and say,” This will change your life.” Joining HLAA in 2013 changed my life, learning from people who share their own experiences and advocate for access. I was honored to serve as President of the NYC chapter and have presented on hearing loss stigma at the last four (live) HLAA Conventions, audiology conferences, and corporate venues. Most recently, I co-produced an award-winning documentary about hearing loss, We Hear You, that shines the light on the hearing loss experience. Theatre has long been a passion. As a Trustee at TDF, I advocate through its TDF Accessibility Programs (TAP) to make theatre more accessible for people with disabilities.

Nancie Collin

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Having a maternal grandfather and mother with severe hearing disabilities certainly contributed a strong predisposition to my hearing loss – along with a lot of rock n’ roll!  As my hearing grew progressively worse in my 40’s, it became increasingly difficult to navigate successfully in the hearing world.  My life changed dramatically when I finally began wearing hearing aids about 10 years ago and I discovered – and became a proud member of -- the HLAA NYC Chapter. 

I am a professional coach helping many people thrive in spite of hearing difficulties, as well as an art enthusiast and collector.    I am on the Program Planning Committee, which is instrumental in recruiting speakers and presenting informative chapter meetings to HLAA members and guests.

I am a passionate advocate for those with hearing loss and continue to support and live by the mission of HLAA. 

Toni Iacolucci

I feel fortunate to have found HLAA-NYC shortly after losing most of my hearing in 2006. It continues to be a gift to engage with such a supportive group, generous in their willingness to share experiences and knowledge about navigating life with hearing loss. 

In addition to serving on the HLAA-NYC Board, I was a member of the HLAA National Board of Trustees for two terms. For many years, I co-chaired the NYC Walk4Hearing and served as Walk Team Coordinator. I also served as NY Downstate Chapter Coordinator. 

The most rewarding part of my involvement with HLAA is advocating to promote communication access.  I am currently serving on an HLAA healthcare committee of the National Board to create best practices in medical facilities. Not only has advocacy helped me deal with the stigma of hearing loss but also to feel engaged and empowered in helping others.  

To live well with hearing loss, I encourage you to join HLAA.

Lyssy Pastrana

Lyssy Pastrana is a photographer and founder of a community workshop organization called Lyssy Warriors for Hearing Loss. She has bilateral hearing loss.

Marcelo Reda

Marcelo Reda is a dedicated parent who embarked on a transformative journey when his child Alice was diagnosed with hearing loss. His relentless pursuit of knowledge and support not only transformed his daughter's life but also inspired him and his wife Natalia to champion the cause for improved resources and information for parents facing similar challenges.

Gail Weiss

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I have had a hearing loss since I was 6 years old. Despite some academic struggles due to difficulty hearing teachers, I graduated from CCNY, where I was editor-in-chief of the school newspaper, and I earned a master’s degree in social work from Fordham University. I worked in the publishing industry for many years—as a writer for TV Guide and an editor/writer for Collier’s Encyclopedia. During my tenure as a writer for Medical Economics, a magazine for physicians, I won three Neal Awards, which are presented annually to business media journalists. Since 2009, I have been an Adult Protective Services worker for Nassau County. Because writing articles and procuring information from social-work clients usually requires telephone interviews, my jobs presented hearing challenges that I have done my best to surmount—most recently by obtaining a captioned telephone. As an HLAA-NYC board member, I am co-editor of the chapter’s award-winning newsletter, News & Views.

Terrence Williams

I am a Hearing Aid Specialist and work at the not-for-profit hearing health care agency in NYC called Center for Hearing and Communication.   I was diagnosed with a mild/moderate hi-frequency hearing loss in my early 20’s.  In fact, I was diagnosed at a hearing aid convention I was attending for work.  I was fit with my first set of hearing aids a few weeks later.  At the time, my diagnosis explained a lot of my prior struggles in school, at work, even at play.  I was fortunate to work someplace that understood and was able to help.  This is also when I was first introduced to Self Help for Hard of Hearing (SHHH), which later became the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA).  I am now happy to serve the community further by joining the board of HLAA. 

 

EX OFFICIO

Jan Blustein and
Shari Eberts

HONORARY

Ruth Bernstein, Barbara Bryan,
Mary Fredericks, and Anne Pope


Committees

NEWS & VIEWS EDITORS

Gail Weiss and Holly Cohen



ADVOCACY

Speakers Bureau:  Ruth Bernstein

Looping: Jerry Bergman and Ellen Semel

Healthcare:  Toni Iacolucci and Ruth Bernstein

Communication Access: Katherine Bouton, Chair

Community Outreach: Maura Olson, Carol Karasick, Lyssy Pastrana

 

FINANCE

Myra Schreibman, Treasurer

 

MARKETING

Outreach & Social Media: Katherine Bouton

Communications:  Holly Cohen and Gail Weiss 

 

PROGRAMMING

Jon Taylor, Chair

Barbara Bryan, Nancie Collin, Anne Pope,
David Landsberger, Katherine Bouton

PROFESSIONAL ADVISORS

Justin Golub
M.D. MS., New York-Presbyterian / Columbia University Irving Medical Center 

Katrien Vermeire
Ph.D., CCC-A, FAAA, Assistant Professor, LIU Brooklyn